Graveyard of Good Intentions: Redux
by scribeninja
Summary: The expansion of the one-shot of the same title. Sookie and Eric have been best friends since they were 8. They love each other, but fate and teen hormones have other plans. AH-OOC Rated M for lemons much, much later. HEA! Complete.
1. Thor and Tink

**Okay, here is the first chapter of the expansion I promised forever ago. And this is how it's going to go:**

**This chapter is Eric's POV of the events when they were kids, up to a little further in (don't want to spoil it). This isn't so much a continuation of the events in the one-shot, but an expansion on the events in it. As many of you know, I had to cut 900 words out of the one-shot and there were a lot of other things I wanted to do to it and add in, so this will give me the chance to do that. In that respect, this story may seem like a rehash since, if you've read the one-shot, you know how it turns out. This should go through all the events in the one-shot, and just past the end of it so they get their lemon. But, I do have a couple things up my sleeve. In particular something involving what was going on with Eric. So please, stick with it. I really think you will like what I have planned. **

**Also, I wanted to tell you that the title comes from the quote: "Indecision is the graveyard of good intentions." Is that right, kris? LOL**

**And, after I wrote the one-shot I was listening to some classic rock, and believe it or not, there's a song that fits these two perfectly. It's "Can't Fight This Feeling" by REO Speedwagon. Listen to that shit! REO makes me happy :)**

**Without further ado:**

**Chapter 1 – Thor and Tink**

I was eight years old when I met my soul mate. I didn't know it then, of course, but that's what she was. She walked into our classroom, and I remember thinking that she'd just end up joining the others in ignoring me, but it turned out that she was joining me in being ignored. I knew why they pretended I didn't exist. I was taller than all of them, and I didn't have any parents. I was abnormal. Sookie, on the other hand, looked like the rest of them, and as far as I knew, she still had her family.

It was the Halloween that year that my life changed. Again, I didn't know it at the time… I was eight… but it did. My aunt and uncle forced me to dress up and go trick-or-treating even though I didn't want to. It wasn't any fun without friends. The only thing that made me do it was that I got to pick my costume. I went as Thor, God of Thunder. He was my favorite hero, and I refused to get a haircut because I wanted to look like him.

I was out by myself, because my guardians didn't seem to understand that an eight year old needs an adult to trick-or-treat. When I saw that none of the other kids my age had parents with them either, I figured it was a small-town thing. I had been all over town, and was about to walk home when I saw what was happening across the street.

Bill, John, and Alcide were stealing Sookie's candy. They were bullies, and they tried to pick on me during recess a lot. I didn't want them picking on Sookie too, and I asked myself, what would Thor do? Thor would protect the girl. So I crossed the street, and hit them all on the head with my hammer.

"Give her the candy back," I told them.

"No! We took it fair and square. No take backs," Bill said.

I hit him in the head with my hammer again, and when Alcide and John stepped forward I hit them too. They took off running, knocking Sookie over in the process, and they still had her candy. I helped her up, and asked if she was okay. She only nodded, and then said, "They broke your hammer."

"That's okay," I said as I looked down at my now-deflated hammer. I felt that Thor would've been proud. "They took your candy."

That's when she started to cry. I didn't know what to do, so I looked around while waiting for her to quit it. I spotted her little crown thing on the ground, and picked it up.

"Is this yours?" I asked.

"Yes, it goes on my head," she sniffed.

I put it back on her head, and then asked what she was dressed as. I couldn't tell.

"I'm Tinkerbell," she said, and smiled the first smile I had ever seen from her. "You know, Tinkerbell, the fairy from Peter Pan?"

"I don't watch many movies," I told her.

"Except Thor?" She asked. I didn't want to tell her that there wasn't a Thor movie, but I was glad that she knew who I was dressed as, so I expressed my love for my hero. A few porch lights went off on that street, and Sookie said she had to go home. I didn't want her to go home. I never talked to anyone, and never got to play with any other kids. I wondered where her parents were, because if they weren't watching her I figured we could trick-or-treat for a while together.

She surprised me when she hung her head and told me that her parents had died. I had no idea, and was sad for her because I knew what it was like not to have parents, and at the same time, I was relieved that I knew someone like me. I reached for her hand.

"Mine too," I told her, and then asked if I could walk home with her.

I held Sookie's hand all the way back to her road, and when we got there, she told me that she had to wait for her brother before going to the house so he wouldn't get into trouble. I waited with her and offered to share my candy. She reminded me that it needed to be checked first, so I dug through my sack until I found the two full size candy bars that came from my house. We were the only ones in town that handed them out. Her brother came running up right after, and Sookie was able to say a quick goodbye before he was dragging her down the road.

I walked home by myself, looking forward to the next time I'd get to see her. I decided to walk with her to school from then on, and I did. I always met her at the end of Hummingbird Road, and we went to school together. When it got too cold to walk, I would meet her in front of the school. We sat together at lunch, and were always partners in gym, regardless of the looks we got from other classmates. We became friends, best friends.

We were inseparable after that. I started going to her house every day after school where we did our homework together, and played. Her grandmother took to me instantly, and I was told to call her Gran, and was always welcome for supper. My aunt and uncle didn't mind, of course. It was less time they had to spend being responsible.

Every Halloween, Sookie and I went trick-or-treating together. She came up with the idea that our costumes should always go together. The next year we went as Beauty and The Beast, her choice. I got to choose our costumes the next year. Sookie and Gran made the costumes every year, and then Sookie and I went door-to-door together until we didn't have any doors left. I'm proud to say that she went home with a sack bulging with candy every year, not a bully around to snatch it from her.

Unfortunately, as we got older, we got less and less candy in our bags, and by the time we hit High School, we started a new tradition. We went to the graveyard next to Sookie's house, which was my way of getting her alone. You see, I was very much in love with Sookie at that point. I know it's completely ridiculous to believe that a fifteen year old could be in love, but I was. The other students all thought we were a couple because we were always together, and even though we denied it, in my own mind I hoped she felt the same about me.

Physically, I had changed a lot. I sort of grew out of my Thor-worship, and as such, I began getting haircuts. I grew into my looks as well, and was perfectly aware that all the girls considered me "hot." Sookie started to develop quite nicely too, and I found it harder and harder to be so close to her when we did our homework together after school without… reacting, if you know what I mean.

Football became my next obsession. I had to play in it Gym during my freshman year, and the coach recruited me for the team. I became quarterback on the JV team, and was a starter at every game. Sookie was excited for me, and got into the habit of staying after school to wait for me to finish with practice. We'd walk back to her house afterward, and continue our routine of supper with Gran, and then homework in Sookie's room.

Halloween stayed my favorite holiday, and Sookie and I still dressed up and met in the graveyard. I would bring candy bars and Sookie would bring some soda, and we'd talk all night. It was always my favorite night of the year.

The Halloween of our junior year everything changed. We were in the graveyard like normal, and Sookie looked gorgeous. I picked the costumes, and I always managed to pick something that I knew she would look amazing in. It took a lot of convincing, but after she was sure nobody but me would see her, Sookie agreed to be Princess Leia in her slave outfit. I was a Jedi. I know we didn't grow up when those movies came out, but I was a huge Star Wars fan, and just imagining Sookie in that outfit… well… you know. She definitely had the body to fill it out perfectly by then. I had hit another growth spurt too, and was getting pretty tall. Being in football required me to weight lift, so I was toned as well.

Sookie met me at our usual spot in a trench coat. I laughed at her, and asked her why she was wearing it.

"Because Gran would kill me if she saw me wearing this," she said as she blushed a light shade of pink.

"Gran's not around anymore, so you can take it off now," I told her with a laugh, hoping to disguise the real reason I wanted her to take off the coat.

She set down the little cooler that held our sodas, and then she slowly unbuttoned the coat. I truly hoped she wasn't intentionally doing that, because if she was, I didn't think I'd be able to stop myself from attacking her. One look at her face told me she wasn't though, she was extremely nervous. I wondered why she would be so nervous, it was just me… and then I realized that I was staring at her. Maybe I was making her uncomfortable? I turned around to rummage around in the bag of candy bars I'd brought to make it seem like it wasn't a big deal, and when I turned back around, she dropped the coat. I almost gasped. Her still-sun-kissed skin practically glowed in the outfit. She filled out the top perfectly, and her long legs peeked out from the leather straps of the skirt. I felt myself harden, and quickly started talking, hoping she wouldn't look in that area.

"See, it's not so bad. You look great," I said as I walked over to her.

"Sure, I look great to you, you're a guy, but I feel naked," she complained. "Can I please put the coat back on?"

We walked over to the tree we always sat under where a blanket was already laid out.

"Where's your Halloween spirit? I'm wearing my costume without a coat," I said as I sat down.

She joined me, and said, "Yes, but you're not dressed like a stripper."

"Would you like me to take some of it off? Because if that's what it takes to make you comfortable, then I will," I told her, and she slapped my arm and laughed. I loved her laugh. It was so genuine and warm.

"I love your laugh," I said before I could stop myself, and then I leaned closer to her, fully intending to kiss her. She inhaled a bit, and I closed my eyes, but before I could do what I so desperately wanted, we heard some kids coming into the graveyard. As we got up to scare them, I silently thanked them. Because as much as I wanted to kiss Sookie, and do so much more with her, I didn't want something like that to screw with our friendship. I spent the rest of the night acting like nothing had happened, and resolved to keep doing it unless she indicated she wanted something different.

She didn't.

The next day when I picked her up for school, I continued to act as though nothing had happened. She did the same, so I made up my mind to forget about it. That decision bothered me for some reason, and as the day wore on I replayed the almost-kiss in my head. She had closed her eyes, and leaned into me slightly. She wanted me to kiss her, I was sure of it. By the end of the day I convinced myself to tell her how I felt. I wasn't sure how I was going to go about it, but I thought I could bring up the almost-kiss as a start and tell her that I really wanted to kiss her.

Even thought the weather had turned chilly, I smiled through the entirety of football practice. I couldn't stop thinking about all the possible reactions I could get from Sookie, and all the ones that were running through my brain ended in the two of us making out in my car. When the coach wanted a group of the starters to stay for a bit I got ticked. I didn't want to wait any longer to start my new relationship with Sookie.

I went up to where she was sitting on the bleachers and told her it would be another thirty minutes, and just as she was about to say something in return Alcide Herveaux came running up to us.

"If it's alright with you Sookie, I can take you home now," he offered.

I wanted to kill him. I was planning on bringing up the almost-kiss on the ride to Sookie's house. I couldn't do that if she got a ride with Alcide. More importantly, I knew Alcide had a thing for her. When the guys talked dirty about the girls in our school, he always told them to shut up if Sookie got brought up. He did it even before I could. Alcide was a good guy, and that scared me.

"Eric?" Sookie said tentatively. "Would you mind if Alcide took me home?"

I focused on Sookie, feeling a little rejected. She always got a ride home from me, and I honestly thought she would just wait for me to get done. Then I remembered the weather and figured that she simply wanted to get somewhere warm.

"It is chilly out, and I don't want you getting sick," I said.

"Alright, I'll go hit the showers, and come get you in a few, okay?" Alcide said to Sookie.

She nodded at him and after he took off for the locker room she looked at me. "Are you still coming over?" she asked.

"Of course," I said, smiling. She still wanted to see me, and there was no reason I couldn't bring up the almost-kiss at her house. "I'll see you in a bit."

I jogged back to the coach and the other starters for our meeting, but kept my eye on Sookie. About ten minutes later Alcide went up to her, took her backpack for her, and walked with her to his truck. I was overcome with jealousy. Sookie liked a guy with manners, and Alcide definitely had them. The only thing that reassured me was that she had still waved goodbye to me.

As soon as our meeting was over I showered quickly and drove as fast as I could to Sookie's house. Since I arrived a bit later than usual Gran already had supper on the table, so I didn't get the chance to talk to her before we ate. We were about halfway through the meal when Gran spoke, crushing my hopes in the process.

"So Eric, do you know the young man who's taking Sookie out on Saturday?"

I immediately looked at Sookie. Her face flushed, and she wouldn't look at me. I must have looked confused because Gran apologized.

"No, Gran. It's okay. I just hadn't seen him to tell him yet," Sookie explained, and then turned to me, finally looking me in the eyes. "Alcide asked me to go on a date with him Saturday, and I said yes."

Even though I had already put it together, I was still shocked. I was finally about to tell her how I felt, and fucking Fate intervened, causing Sookie to slip right through my fingers. I tried to mask my true emotions of sadness and hurt, as I was unwilling to show how much her news had upset me.

"Alcide is a good person. He's on the football team with me, and I've never heard or seen him be disrespectful towards a woman. Sookie will be fine, Gran," I told Gran with a smile.

Sookie looked surprised, and I wondered why. I would never lie to Gran, and Alcide was actually a good guy. If he weren't, there was no way I'd let Gran think any different. Sookie either.

After dinner, Sookie and I went to her room so I could do my homework. We were stretched out on her bed together, and for once my body wasn't reacting in an inappropriate way. I couldn't stop thinking about how my hopes and plans had gone to shit.

As soon as I finished up I got off the bed and closed her bedroom door. Gran had an open-door rule, mostly for when Jason still lived at home, but we always kept Sookie's open out of respect for her. We only closed it when we had something important to talk about. Sookie sat up on the bed, and I joined her.

"Do you like him?" I asked without looking at her.

"He's never been anything but a gentleman with me, and he made sure to ask if you and I were together before he asked me out."

"And you told him we weren't," I mused to myself.

"Eric, are you afraid I'll stop being your friend?" She asked, and took my hand. "You'll always be my best friend. It's just one date. We might find that we hate each other, you never know," she said.

I didn't believe it for a second. Alcide was a decent southern gentleman with manners, and I was sure the girls found him attractive. The truth was, there was nothing to keep her from being with him. Suddenly, she punched me hard on the arm. While it didn't really _hurt_, I am a strong man after all; Sookie could throw a hard punch.

"Ow," I said, "What was that for?"

"You're cutting me off, and it's pissing me off. Don't do that. I couldn't stand it if you stopped being my friend."

She looked really close to crying, and if there was one thing I couldn't take, it was a crying Sookie. I immediately wrapped my arms around her and rocked her back and forth.

"I won't stop being your friend, I promise. You can't get rid of me that easily," I told her, and I meant it. There was no way I could ever stop being her friend. She was all I had, and I really wanted it to stay that way. We worked best like that.

"I don't ever want to get rid of you," she whispered quietly, and I'm not sure if she intended for me to hear it, but I did.

I held her until everything felt normal again, and then I went home, promising to pick her up the next day. I was determined for things to stay the same, but I was smart enough to know they were about to change.

* * *

**Okay, how was that? Did you like Eric's POV? **

**HUGE thanks to FDM for beta'ing this for me, and to Pix for her insight. *huggles her girls*Another huge thanks to Sunkisz, my LB and Piglet, because without her kicking my ass into writing this, you probably woulnd't be getting it. Go check out her stories Fighting Against Fate, Grasping at Impossible, and Without You. Seriously, little Eben in Without You is the cutest little Thor-Worshipper in the world :)**


	2. First Date

**I wanted to wait until I updated this story to do this, and now I finally can so here goes...**

**THANK YOU SO FUCKING MUCH! *breathes* I feel better. I can't thank y'all enough for voting for GoGI in the GP contest. I was shocked, awed, and so humbled when I won, and I still have a hard time believing it. I'm so glad you liked my story enough to make it win, and I really hope you enjoy this expanded version just as much :) So again, thank you. I would never be doing this without my awesome readers. *wipes away tear***

**Chapter 2 – First Date**

The week after Alcide asked me out flew by. Things stayed pretty normal for Eric and me, except that Alcide began calling me every night. It was usually while Eric was doing his homework, so I didn't feel like I was ignoring him or anything.

Through our conversations I found that Alcide and I had a lot in common. We liked the same kind of music and movies, and he had a great sense of humor. I actually found myself hoping he would want to be my boyfriend.

When Saturday came around I was a ball of nerves. I'd never been to the movies with a boy before. Eric and I had gone plenty of times, but as friends. This would be a boy who might possibly want to kiss me, or hold my hand. I worried about my palms getting sweaty, and made sure I had breath mints in my purse. I also made sure I had some cash, because I wasn't sure how the paying thing was going to happen. I always insisted I pay for my ticket with Eric even though he offered to pay every single time. The only time he got away with it was when we went for my birthday. There I was, about to go on my first date, and I was thinking about my best friend more than the boy who was actually interested in me. What was wrong with me?

Eric came by like he normally did on Saturdays, and I figured he would leave before Alcide got there, but he didn't, so when Alcide came in to introduce himself to Gran, Eric was there too. He stood behind Gran, towering over all of us with his arms crossed and a look of warning on his face. It was almost like a lion keeping eye on the enemy, protecting his territory.

I gave Gran a hug and Eric a kiss on the cheek before leaving with Alcide. He was the perfect gentleman. He opened his truck door for me and let me pick the music again.

"So what's with Eric?" he asked on the drive to the theater.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"He was acting like your father or something. I swear I thought he was going to pull a shotgun out and clean it while giving me a talk," he answered with a short laugh.

"I don't know. He's my best friend, and we're protective of each other. I guess he was just filling my brother's spot."

Alcide glanced at me, and had a strange look on his face, almost as though he wasn't sure if he believed me.

"So, what movie are we seeing?" I asked, changing the subject.

"I thought we'd see that new comedy that came out last week. I was told it was actually funny. I mean, it's intelligently funny, not fart-joke funny, and I thought you would appreciate intelligently funny," he rambled.

"But do you like intelligently funny?" I asked seriously.

He glanced nervously at me, like he was afraid I was giving him some sort of test.

"Um… yeah. I do, actually. The stupid comedies are just really stupid. I don't really laugh at them."

"Same here," I replied, and he relaxed a bit.

We talked the rest of the way to the theater, and it was a comfortable conversation. Not one single, solitary awkward silence. It was rather nice.

As soon as we got to the ticket booth, Alcide took out his wallet and paid for the tickets before I could even get my hand in my purse. He also bought us both a soda, and one big bucket of popcorn. Immediately, my girl-mind thought of buttery-hands-meeting-in-the-popcorn-bucket scenario and I blushed. We went into the theater and found two seats in the back. It was a little strange, since Eric and I always sat center-center. I smiled at the thought, remembering an enthusiastic Eric when he proclaimed them to be the best seats to watch a movie from.

I shook my head. I had to stop thinking about Eric while on my first date with Alcide. I sat down, and we talked quietly until the movie started. As soon as the lights went down, I felt Alcide's right hand on my left. I almost panicked, but took a deep breath and turned my palm up. His fingers laced through mine and I smiled. I was holding hands with a boy. About halfway into the movie I remembered the popcorn, and reached over to his lap with my other hand to get some and my hand touched his in the bucket. I must have surprised him, because he jumped a little and removed his hand. I saw him smile though, so I grabbed a handful and ate it. We worked out a rhythm with the popcorn and our hands didn't touch in the bucket again. It was kind of funny.

When the movie ended I awkwardly released his hand and blushed a bit. Alcide put our empty soda cups in the empty popcorn bucket and threw them all away as we walked out of the theater.

We talked about the movie on the way back to my house and I found myself growing nervous again. Would he ask me on another date? Would he kiss me? Ask me to be his girlfriend? Our conversation died off as he pulled up to my house. He got out and immediately came around to open my door and help me out of the huge truck. We walked up to the door together and I suddenly remembered that I forgot to pop a mint into my mouth on the way home.

"I had a good time with you tonight, Sookie," he said.

"I had a good time too," I replied.

"Would you like to go on another date with me next Saturday?" He asked, and I felt the butterflies in my stomach.

I smiled. "I'd love to."

He smiled back, and then tentatively leaned down and pressed his lips to mine. I pressed my lips back against his just a bit, and after a couple seconds he pulled back. I had just had my first kiss. It was a closed-mouth kiss, but it was a kiss.

"I'll call you tomorrow," he said, and I nodded, unable to speak.

Alcide smiled at me once more before walking down the porch steps and getting into his truck. I watched him pull out of the driveway, and after he disappeared down the road I finally noticed that Eric's car was still in the drive. I felt a pang of… something; regret? Sadness? I sighed and turned to go inside.

Gran was sitting at the kitchen table, reading her book. She was already in her pajamas and smiled as I walked in.

"How was your date, dear?" She asked sweetly.

"It was great, Gran," I said as I walked to her and planted a kiss on her cheek. "He was a perfect gentleman, and he asked me out again for next Saturday."

"What did you say?"

"I said yes," I said. "I saw Eric's car outside. Is he still here?"

"Yes, he stayed and played rummy with me and cleaned all the ceiling fans," she said with a bright smile.

I smiled back. That sounded like Eric. He was so good to Gran, and I loved him for it.

"He's in your room sweetie," she said as she stood up. "I'm heading to bed. I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight, Gran," I said and she went down the hall to her bedroom. I got a glass of tea, and headed to my room where Eric was stretched out on my bed, sleeping. I smiled, knowing that he would be staying the night. It did happen on occasion, and usually he slept on the couch, but every once in a while we fell asleep in my bed. Gran never said anything because she knew we weren't doing anything inappropriate. My door stayed open the whole time, and I had a vent that was connected to Gran's room. She had excellent hearing for an old woman, and there would be no getting any funny business past her.

I set my tea down on my bed stand and put my purse on my dresser before grabbing some pajamas and taking them to the bathroom with me. I smelled like stale popcorn, so I took a quick shower before heading back to my room. Eric was still in the same position, and I saw that our photo album was lying open across his stomach. It was open to a picture of us at last year's homecoming dance. I smiled as I closed the album and put it up before pulling off his shoes. I pulled back the covers on one side of the bed and slid in between the sheets. Without thinking twice, I instantly cuddled up next to him, stretching my arm across his chest and laying my head on his shoulder. It didn't take me long to fall asleep, and just before I was dead to the world, I felt his arm come around my shoulders and his body shift more towards mine. I smiled as I drifted off into my dreams.

**EPOV**

I was not a happy person on the day of Sookie's first date with Alcide. I could see how nervous she was and it only served to make me depressed as hell. I loved her, and she was going out on a date with another guy.

We hung out all day, did our homework for the weekend, listened to music… the normal stuff we did on Saturdays. As the day wore on, Sookie became more and more distracted, and I became more and more annoyed, though I did my best to hide it.

When Alcide showed up he came inside to meet Gran, which pissed me off. Why did he have to be such a gentleman? Why couldn't he have pulled up and honked his horn until Sookie came out? I glared at him until he left… with Sookie. As soon as they were gone, I huffed and plopped down on the couch.

Gran sat down in the chair across from the couch.

"Are you alright?" She asked.

I immediately sat up straight, and lied. "I'm fine."

She gave me a skeptical look, and then asked if I was hungry.

"Would you mind if I stayed for dinner?" I asked.

She smiled warmly, and said, "Of course I don't mind. You know you're always welcome here. How do pork chops sound?"

I smiled back. I loved Gran's comfort food. "Sounds great, Gran."

She got up and headed for the kitchen, patting my shoulder on the way. I slumped back on the couch after she left and wallowed a bit. I wondered what Alcide and Sookie were talking about. I knew he wouldn't put the moves on her or anything, and that just made me hate him more. There was no way the two of them wouldn't end up together. As I tortured myself with images of the girl I loved with another man, I noticed the ceiling fan had some dust on it. I sat up, grateful to have something to occupy myself with. Gran probably hadn't noticed, and I knew if she did she would try to clean it. The last thing she needed was a broken hip, so I gathered up the cleaning supplies and started dusting the blades. I didn't stop with the fan in the living room, and by the time Gran called me in for supper, all five ceiling fans in the house were spotless.

I put the cleaning supplies away, and cleaned up in the bathroom before heading to the kitchen. Gran set the table even though it was just the two of us. She made pork chops, mashed potatoes with peppered white gravy, and green beans. It was definitely comfort food. We did everything as we would have if Sookie were there. I held Gran's hand and bowed my head as she said a prayer, and then I waited for her to fill her plate before I fixed mine.

"What were you cleaning?" she asked sweetly. "You have some dust on your shoulder."

I looked down, and sure enough I had dust bunnies on my shoulder. I grabbed a napkin and pulled them off my shirt with it so I didn't get any in the food, or on Gran's clean floor.

"I dusted all the ceiling fans," I said as I got up to throw the napkin away.

"Thank you dear. That was very nice of you," she said.

"It's no problem, Gran. I didn't want you to have to climb up there and do it."

After we finished dinner, Gran put the leftovers away while I started on the dishes. Curiously, she didn't shoo me away like she normally did, and simply came over to rinse and dry. When all the dishes were clean, I sat down at the kitchen table. I didn't want to leave until Sookie got back, but I didn't know how to have a legit reason for staying.

Gran sat down across from me and gave me a measuring look. "Would you like to play some cards and keep an old woman company?"

I smiled. "I'd love to," I said, and then got up to retrieve her deck of cards from the living room.

"What would you like to play?" I asked as I sat down and began shuffling the deck.

"My game is rummy," she said.

I nodded and dealt the cards. We were starting game seven when she finally called me out.

"When are you going to tell her you love her?" she asked.

My jaw went a little slack and my eyes immediately met hers. She was staring knowingly at me, and had a small smirk on her face. This was a Gran I had never seen before.

"I… Wha… I…" I stumbled over my words, totally unsure of what to say.

"Eric, you're a sweet boy, but even the sweetest seventeen year-old boy wouldn't spend his Saturday evening with an old woman, cleaning her ceiling fans and playing seven games of rummy with her without having a reason. You're waiting for her to come back, and you're in love with her."

My jaw dropped a bit lower, and I took a deep breath.

"I was going to tell her the day Alcide asked her out," I said.

"Oh, sweetheart," Gran said sympathetically and reached across the table to touch my hand. "And now you're watching her go on a date with another boy."

"He really is a good guy, Gran. There's no way they won't end up together," I confessed, relieved to finally have someone to talk to about it.

"Sookie is a naïve teenage girl. She's not going to know how you feel unless you tell her. I know that you don't feel right telling her now that she's got someone else, but Eric, you'll have to tell her eventually."

"I know," I said. "I know."

We played two more games of rummy, and I began getting tired. Gran took mercy on me.

"Why don't you go lie down in Sookie's room? I'll wait up for her," she said.

"Okay," I said, and gave her a peck on the cheek before heading off to Sookie's room.

I paced around for a bit, looking at all the memories we'd made together. Sookie was a packrat and kept pieces of everything. There was a swatch of fabric from every one of our Halloween costumes over the years up on a bulletin board, and a picture of us together in our costumes on a memory board. She hadn't gotten the one from this year developed yet. It was only a headshot of us since she wouldn't let Gran see her in the costume. I knew she had an album somewhere that was full of pictures of the two of us, and I started searching for it. While I was looking, I noticed for the first time that she had a framed picture of us on our first day of high school on her desk. I don't know how I'd missed it before. I picked it up and smiled as I remembered that day. We had every class together our freshman year, and it was by far the best year of school I'd ever had.

I finally spied the album on the bookshelf after I set the picture down. It was hand-decorated and had our names on the cover. She had so many things stuffed in it. There were pictures of us doing all sorts of stuff together growing up. I settled onto the bed with the album and flipped through the pages, letting myself get carried back into the memories. I actually laughed out loud at the picture of us on our first roller coaster ride on our eighth grade field trip. Sookie almost killed me for buying the picture, but I had to have it. I had my arms thrown in the air, my mouth open in a joyous yell, and Sookie had her arms wrapped around my torso, her eyes were shut tight, and she was obviously screaming in terror. It had taken me five minutes to get her to let go after the ride ended. She refused to go on a roller coaster ever again.

At some point I fell asleep, and when I woke up the album was no longer on me. Instead, Sookie's arm was draped across my chest, and her head was on my shoulder. I could feel that she had taken my shoes off and smiled. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and angled my body towards her before drifting back to sleep.

* * *

***le sigh***

**I'm really loving writing this one! I'm actually finding myself all torn between Eric and Alcide *bites nails* I have the next chapter done as well and my amazing beta has it, but don't expect it for a while, okay? The next week or so will be nuts for everyone I'm sure. **

**Just an announcement:**

**The Poppin' Cherries Contest finalists have been announced, and you only have a week to pick your top two favorites! Please, please, please go support the new authors! Read, review, and vote!**

**http://www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/u/2130969/Poppin_Cherries**


	3. Homecoming

**Chapter 3 - Homecoming**

When I woke up the next morning Eric was still in bed with me. He had one arm wrapped around my shoulders and the other draped over my waist. I couldn't help the warm feelings I got from waking up with him. It was just wonderful to be so near him. It also hurt just a bit, because I knew he wasn't mine. He may not have been anyone else's either, but he most definitely wasn't mine.

It didn't escape my notice that I had kissed one boy and liked him perfectly well the night before, and was now waking up in bed with an entirely different boy and having warm thoughts about him as well. I wondered if this would ever change.

I desperately wanted to stretch and use the bathroom, but being wrapped up in Eric's arms was so wonderful, and I didn't get to enjoy it like this that often. Ignoring my bladder, I snuggled back into Eric's embrace and breathed him in. I was just drifting back to sleep when I heard someone enter the room.

"Sookie, Eric, it's time to get up and ready for church," Gran said gently from the doorway.

I felt Eric stir a little and looked up at him. His eyes slowly opened, and he immediately looked down at me. A slow grin formed on his face, and he squeezed me a little tighter, giving me a morning hug.

"Morning," he said.

"Morning," I said and squeezed him back.

"Get a move on you two," Gran said, and I heard her walk out of the room.

Eric didn't let go of me, so I tried to push him away. He held me tighter, and I laughed.

"Come on, I need to get ready."

"But I'm comfortable," he pouted, and then reluctantly released me. "I guess I should go home and get ready."

I didn't want him to leave, but he did need to change clothes. He sat up on the bed and stretched his arms above his head, which lifted his shirt just enough that I could see some of his defined abs. He glanced around at the floor until he spotted his shoes, and then pulled them on. I simply lay there, silently watching him. His hair was adorable, shooting off in all sorts of different directions. I loved his bedhead.

After his shoes were on, he looked at me with a goofy smile on his face.

"Thanks for taking my shoes off last night. I'm sorry you had to share the bed with me," he said, but he didn't look all that sorry.

"Hakuna Matata, my dear friend," I replied, and he laughed.

He stood up and stretched again, and this time I got to see a bit of that lovely v-line of his. I could blame the drool on just having woken up right?

"I'll meet you at church," he said.

"Okay."

After Eric left, I finally went to the bathroom and got dressed. Gran was fixing breakfast when I went to the kitchen. We both ate, and after we cleaned up the dishes we headed out to church.

Eric was waiting outside for us when we got there, and took Gran's arm to escort her up the steps like he always did. I smiled warmly at them. The way he was with her made me so happy.

The service was about the same as it always was. Father Littrell was past his prime, and his sermons were always very similar. Gran diligently went every week though, and Eric and I always went with her. After the service was over, Eric and I left together. Gran always had lunch with one of her church friends after the sermon, so Eric and I would take off and have lunch somewhere else.

We went to Merlotte's that day. Sam Merlotte's family owned it and it was where most of the teens hung out during the day. At night, not so much, but during the day there tended to be more of a high school crowd; at least on weekends.

After we got our food ordered, a serious look settled on Eric's face.

"What?" I asked.

"How did your date go last night?" He asked.

Oh… the date. I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it all day. I wasn't sure what to tell him. I didn't want to gush about it, even though I did get a bit giddy when I remembered holding Alcide's hand and our kiss. Eric didn't want things to change, and I was sure if I told him those things he would be upset, so I tried to be vague.

"It was great. Alcide's really nice, and he asked me out again for next Saturday," I told him.

"So you're going out with him again?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Okay," he said simply, and then changed the subject. "So, Homecoming is in two weeks. Is it your turn or mine to buy the tickets?"

It was my turn, but it suddenly hit me that Alcide may ask me to the dance. Could I tell him that I always went with Eric? What if he asked me to be his girlfriend too? Wouldn't I be obligated to go with him then?

"What's wrong?" Eric asked.

"I just… It's my turn to buy them, but what if Alcide asks me to the dance?" I asked calmly, not wanting to upset him.

Too late.

A look of sadness crossed his face before her threw that mask up.

"If he asked, would you say yes?"

"If he was my boyfriend I would, but he hasn't asked that yet," I said, and then paused. What was I doing? I'd gone on one date with a guy, and I was already destroying our friendship. "You know what? Screw it. We only went on one date. If he wanted to take me to the dance, he should have asked last night. You and I always go together, and that's not about to change," I said, and watched as a smile graced his perfect lips. It was quickly replaced by a slight frown.

"But what if he asks you to be his girlfriend next Saturday? Would you go with him then?"

"Honestly? I don't know. I've never been in this situation before, but I'm telling you now, Eric. You and I are going to the dance together. If he asks, that's what I'll tell him. I promise," I said.

The waitress came back with our food, and the subject was dropped even though it seemed like Eric wanted to say more about the subject.

We talked about inane things for the rest of the day, and he seemed to give me an extra-long hug when he left that night.

That week flew by so fast I could hardly believe it was Saturday when it came around. Alcide and I talked on the phone and in the halls at school, and he told me he was taking me out to dinner for our date.

Eric was still at the house when Alcide picked me up again, and I had a fleeting hope that he would be there when I got home.

Alcide took me to the nicest restaurant in town, which happened to be Merlotte's. It was kind of nice to just be in a relaxed environment with him. We ate and talked for a couple of hours before we realized how long we'd been there. Alcide paid again, and then took me home where he walked me to the door.

"Sookie, I was wondering something," he asked nervously.

"What?"

"Would you be my girlfriend?" He blurted out, and then looked even more nervous. It was almost like he wasn't breathing.

I smiled and blushed. Alcide asked me to be his girlfriend. A boy actually wanted me like that.

"Yes, I would love to," I said, and watched the color return to his face. He really was a handsome guy.

"Great," he said with a huge grin, and then he looked nervous again. He started to lean in, and I knew he was going to kiss me again. I closed my eyes and felt his fingers tangle into my hair just before his lips touched mine. I knew what he was going for, so I parted my lips a little bit, letting him know I was okay with it. It took him a second, and it was a little awkward at first, but his tongue entered my mouth and we began French kissing. It was a strange feeling, but I quickly found that I liked it and began massaging his tongue with mine.

I moved a little closer to him bringing my hands up to his neck, causing my chest to press against him. A couple seconds later, he abruptly pulled back with a smile. I smiled back.

"I have another question," he said, and I nodded. "Will you go with me to the Homecoming dance?"

I felt a sinking sensation in my stomach.

"I… Alcide…" I mumbled, not really sure what to say. He looked confused, so I figured I'd just let it out. "I already promised Eric we'd go together this year. I wouldn't feel right backing out on him now. We do it every year."

Alcide looked a little crestfallen, and I expected him to protest, but he surprised me.

"I understand," he said, and took my hand. "But I'm reserving at least three slow songs right now. And prom," he added with a smile.

"Really? You're not upset?" I asked.

"I can't say I'm not disappointed. I mean, you're my girlfriend and you're going to go to the Homecoming dance with your friend instead. But I'll get over it. I know you wouldn't have said no if it didn't really mean something to go with him."

I smiled and squeezed his hand. "Thank you," I said and stretched up to give him a peck on the cheek. Letting go of his hand, I opened the screen door to head inside, but turned around at the last second.

"Oh, Alcide?"

"Yes?"

"I'd love to go to prom with you," I said, and after I saw him grin at my answer I went inside.

~0~0~0~

Two weeks later it was the night before the Homecoming game. Eric and I were having our ritual veg-out in my room, watching movies, being lazy. The coach begged the players to get a full night's sleep and eat healthy, but Eric swore that doing those things stressed him out and he couldn't focus, so we started this tradition.

Our friendship was still going great. He tried to convince me to go with Alcide to the dance, but I told him I had made my decision and I was sticking to it. He didn't argue after that.

"So," Eric began while I switched movies. "Are you still going to wear my jersey to the game tomorrow?"

"As far as I know. Alcide hasn't asked me to wear his," I replied as I put the next DVD in.

"But you're his girlfriend. Won't everybody expect you to wear it?"

"I don't really give a crap what everybody expects me to do. When have you and I ever cared? Alcide won't mind either," I said, sitting back down on my beanbag.

"Yes he will," Eric said under his breath.

"What?"

He sighed. "Come on, Sookie. He minds. He's a guy. He's a varsity starter on the football team, he's popular… he expects his girlfriend to wear his number at the game. He already has to watch you go to the dance with someone else…"

"You actually want me to wear his number? You want me to go to the dance with him? What happened to our friendship not changing?"

"Things change, Sookie. Even if you wear his jersey, even if you go to the dance with him… we'll still be friends. That will never change. He may seem okay with it now, but eventually he's going to think you're choosing me over him, and I don't want to see you get upset when that happens. I'm okay with you having a boyfriend, I promise."

Well, shit. He was right. I knew in my gut he was right, so why was it so hard to hear?

"You'll still go to the dance, right?"

He smiled, "Yes, I will. I'll even reserve a few dances for you."

I kicked his leg lightly and laughed.

We finished up our veg-out night after two more movies, and Eric fell asleep on the floor. I took his shoes off again and covered him up before changing and climbing into bed.

That was the first night I dreamed of Alcide instead of Eric. It was a little strange at first, but I still woke with a smile.

Eric was in the shower when I woke up, so I went ahead and ate some breakfast while I waited for the bathroom to be free. Being a guy, he didn't take long, and came out soon after. We told each other good morning and I finished up eating then headed to get ready.

After I got dressed we went to school, and before we got out of the car Eric took my hand.

"What is it?" I asked him.

"I just want you to know that I meant what I said last night. We will always be friends, okay?"

"I know," I said, and leaned across the car to hug him.

He was smiling when we got out of the car and walked into the building. Alcide met me at my locker, and I got my good morning kiss from him. I was really beginning to appreciate kissing. When I wasn't doing it I thought it was overrated, but boy was I ever wrong.

"I have news," I told him as I put my bag in my locker and grabbed the book I'd need for my first class.

"What's that?" he asked.

"I'm going to the dance with you tonight," I told him.

His face lit up. "Really? How did that happen?"

"Eric and I talked, and he told me what a butt I was being about the whole thing. He's completely okay with it. I do need to apologize to you for everything. I really was being stupid."

"No, you weren't. You were protecting your friendship, and I admire that about you. I can't say I'm not happy about this change though. Will you wear my jersey tonight too?" He asked.

"Yes, I will, but I'm going to paint Eric's number on my cheek," I said.

He laughed, "You would, too."

I nodded, "Yes, yes I would."

He looked like he was about to kiss me again, but the bell rang so he gave me a quick peck on the cheek and we went to our classes.

The day was light and easy because of the game. There was the homecoming parade after lunch, and then the pep rally before early release. I rode on the class float since I wasn't a part of any of the clubs, and we were way in the back. By the time the end of the parade was back at the school, most of the student body was filling the bleachers. Luckily, Eric sat on the edge of where all the players sat and saved me a seat. I quickly made my way to him as the rally started.

The coach gave a speech, and the cheerleaders did their thing. It didn't escape my notice that the head cheerleader, Pam, was eye-fucking Eric through every routine. Pam was the school hussy. She wouldn't sleep with just anyone, but she did get around. Her sights had been set on Eric for a couple years now, but she never could get him. He told me he wasn't interested in girls like that, and never gave her the time of day. In fact, as she stared him down he shifted uncomfortably and frowned.

"Ignore her," I whispered in his ear as I squeezed his knee lightly.

"It's kinda hard to do that when she's staring me down," he whispered back. "She's like a lion stalking its prey."

I chuckled and nudged him a little bit. He laughed and nudged me back, and when I glanced back at Pam I saw that she looked pissed. Oh well, Eric wasn't interested, and she couldn't have him.

After the cheerleaders finished their routine, the varsity team was introduced to everyone, which meant Eric had to get up. The players stood by the coach while he gave another long-winded speech, so I focused on Alcide and Eric instead. They were both looking at me, and I felt myself blush.

I took the opportunity to really look at both of them side by side. Eric was a couple inches taller than Alcide, and just a bit more buff, but not much. Alcide had dark, thick, slightly curly hair that was just long enough to run your fingers through, and Eric kept his cut pretty close to his head now. It was long enough to mess up and pull on, but still a bit shorter than Alcide's. Their clothing style was pretty much the same. At the moment it was hard to judge because they were both wearing jeans and jerseys, but I knew they both liked t-shirts for casual wear.

The boys started to head back to the bleachers and I snapped out of my musings. Eric came to sit beside me again, and we watched the rest of the pep rally before finally being released to go home. Alcide met me at my locker again while Eric grabbed his things, and he wrapped me in a hug before handing me a white jersey with his number on it. Since we were playing a home game the players wore the red ones. I took it from him and smiled.

"Thank you," I said, and he quickly pressed his lips to mine after glancing around for teachers. When he finally pulled away I was breathless.

"For luck," he whispered in my ear. "I'll see you tonight."

"Okay," I said, and watched him disappear into the sea of students as Eric walked up to me.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Yup," I said and closed my locker with a smile.

Eric took me home where I fixed my hair and put on my jeans and Alcide's jersey. Eric's number was painted on my face with some red and white Halloween face paint. I packed my dress pants and top for the dance and waited for Eric to come pick me up for the game. He was pleased when he saw his number on my face, but he didn't make a big deal about it.

There were already people arriving when we got to the game, and Eric took off for the locker room while I made my way to the bleachers. The game started about thirty minutes later, and we kicked the other team's butt! It was a fantastic game, and after it ended I met a sweaty Eric outside the locker room door. I gave him a hug and congratulations before Alcide walked up to get his hugs… and his kisses.

After he went into the locker room, I went to Eric's car to retrieve my bag, then headed to the girl's bathroom in the school to change and wipe the paint off my face. When I was finally dance-ready I took my bag back to Eric's car, and then met Alcide in front of the school.

He looked so great. He was freshly showered, and wearing a nice pair of dress pants and a button up shirt.

"You look beautiful, Sook," he said after I hugged him.

"Thank you. You clean up nice too," I said.

We went in, got our pictures taken, and started dancing. Alcide talked to the popular kids a lot, and they seemed to ignore me for the most part. One of the girls, Amelia, was actually nice in a genuine way and talked to me some. We even made shopping plans, which made me happy because while Eric would go shopping with me, he wasn't much help when it came to certain things.

When Amelia went off to dance with her boyfriend Tray, I felt really alone. Alcide kept his arm around me, but he got really animated while talking about football and I wasn't really in the conversation. On top of that, I kept getting dirty looks from Selah, Debbie, and Arlene, who had never liked me.

The first slow song they played I was hoping Alcide would ask me to dance, but he was in the middle of another football story. To my surprise and delight, Eric came up and took my hand. He nodded towards the dance floor and started to pull on my arm.

"I'm going to dance with Eric," I told Alcide, and his head whipped around to see Eric trying to lead me away. He looked a little upset, but he nodded and gave me a kiss on the cheek before releasing me.

Eric led me to the dance floor, and then wrapped his arms around my waist as my hands went around his neck. He respectfully stayed a couple inches away so he didn't tick Alcide off, I'm sure. Even so, I could tell Alcide was watching us.

"Are you having fun?" he asked.

"Not really," I answered honestly. "The girls are being bitches, and Alcide won't stop talking about football."

"He's probably not used to this," he said.

"Yeah, but it'd be nice to _dance_ at the dance at least. We only did once when we first got here. It's been all football talk since then."

Eric gave me a reassuring smile and we finished out the dance in silence. As soon as the song ended Alcide was there, as though he was counting the seconds until he could cut in.

"I'll take it from here," he shot at Eric as he wrapped his arm around me.

"Save me another dance?" Eric asked me, ignoring Alcide.

I nodded, and then Eric walked away. The next song was a fast one, and Alcide asked if I wanted to dance. I was a little peeved by his slight rudeness to Eric, so I declined and said I needed to use the restroom. I tried to tamp down my anger while I leaned against the cool concrete wall in the bathroom. It was perfectly reasonable for Alcide to be a bit jealous that his girlfriend danced with someone else, and the only reason I was angry was because it was Eric.

Finally I made up my mind to tell Alcide that he couldn't treat Eric that way, and walked back out to the gym. There was a slow song that had just started, and almost as soon as I emerged Alcide was there, asking me to dance. I said yes, and let him lead me to the dance floor.

He wrapped his arms around my waist like Eric had, only he held me closer. Much, much closer.

"Listen, the way you just treated Eric… That wasn't okay," I said. "I understand if you didn't like me dancing with another guy, but it's Eric. He's my best friend."

His head hung a little bit and he apologized. "I'm sorry. I know I was rude, but I was a little ticked at myself. I haven't been a very good date, and I'm sorry for that too."

"Apology accepted," I said as I brushed my fingers through his hair to get him to look at me. "I promise."

"Okay," he said, and then looked a little troubled.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Would you mind if I started taking you to and from school?" he asked.

"No," I answered instantly, and I knew he would take it wrong. His grip around me loosened a little, and he looked a mixture of annoyed and ticked.

"Why not?"

"Because Eric's always taken me to school, and he always comes to my house after school, so it would be pointless for you to take me home as well."

At that point we stopped moving, but our arms were still around each other.

"What's the real reason?" he asked.

"What are you talking about? That is the real reason. He's…"

"Your best friend, I know… you've said that."

I dropped my arms.

"What is wrong with you? I promised him we would remain friends even though I was dating you, and I fully intend to keep that promise."

He removed his hands from my waist and snorted.

"Right… you expect me to believe that?"

"Yes, because it's the truth," I said, the volume of my voice rising a bit.

"So do you give him a "_friendly_" hug every morning too?" he asked, using air quotes and everything. "Don't deny it, Arlene saw you two this morning."

"You are being a jerk, you know that?" I poked him in the chest. "That _was _a friendly hug, and _no _it does not happen every morning."

I started to walk away, but he moved quickly and stepped in front of me.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"I'm leaving. Do you expect me to stay here with you while you're acting like an ass?"

"Let me give you a ride home," he insisted.

"No, I'll go find Eric… you know… since he's my friend with benefits and all. Might even give him a hug," I shot at him, and he flinched a little.

"Can I call you later?" he asked, suddenly sounding sheepish.

"Sure, why not?" I said sarcastically, and walked away to find Eric.

I spotted him by the bathroom and went up to him quickly.

"Hey, ready for that dance?" he asked when he spotted me, and then he saw how upset I was. "What's wrong?"

"Will you take me home?" I asked.

"Yeah. Let's go," he said immediately, not asking questions, but looking completely concerned.

He didn't say anything until we were in the car and on the road.

"What happened?"

"I'm still a little angry right now, so I'd prefer to talk about it later."

"Okay," he said, and kept driving.

By the time we got back to my house I had cooled down some. I grabbed my bag from the car and we went inside. It was a little late, and Gran was about to go to bed, so we both told her goodnight and then headed to my room to talk.

I grabbed some clothes and went to the bathroom to change, while Eric changed in my room. I put on some pajama pants and a tank top, and pulled my hair up in a knot high on my head so I could wash my face, then I brushed my teeth before heading back to my room. Eric was waiting on his beanbag, and he was wearing a pair of flannel pants and a Bon Temps Football shirt.

I sat on my beanbag and took a deep breath while Eric waited patiently.

"Are you ready to talk now?" he asked.

"Yes," I said.

"So what happened?"

"We had a fight," I said, and couldn't help but notice a fleeting smile cross his face.

"About what?"

"You," I said, and then he looked a little upset.

"It's not because of the dance is it?"

"No. Well, sort of. I mean, I think that started it. He apologized for that, then he asked me if he could start taking me to and from school every day."

Eric's posture straightened, like he was getting ready to go on the defensive.

"I told him no, Eric. Don't get all ticked. That was what made him mad. He kind of insinuated that you and I are more than friends because Arlene saw me give you a hug this morning."

"Shit. I'm sorry, Sook."

"Why are you apologizing?! You are my friend, and I can hug you whenever I damn well please!"

"Shhh, don't wake Gran."

I took a breath and calmed down.

"I'm just so frustrated. I really like him, and he is a good guy. He actually seemed to regret starting something when I walked away, but the point is that he still started it. If he can't trust me, especially when it comes to you, then there's no point."

Eric was silent for a minute, and he looked almost… wistful. He finally took a deep breath and then surprised me.

"Sookie, I'm fine with it if Alcide wants to take you to school in the mornings, as long as I get to take you home. And if he ever wants me to stop coming over, I draw the line. But honestly, I don't want you to be unhappy over something as silly as this."

I reached over and took his hand. "I would draw the line there too. If he ever wanted me to choose between you and him, there wouldn't be a choice. You are my best friend, and my home is your home. I won't let anyone, or anything, come between that."

"I know you won't," he said with a small smile. "I'm going to make us something to eat. I'm starving. Why don't you call him?"

I nodded, and then he got up and headed for the kitchen. I grabbed my cell phone and just as I was about to call Alcide, it rang.

"Hi," I answered quietly, unsure of how to proceed.

"I'm sorry," he said immediately.

"Alcide…" I tried to stop him, but he cut me off.

"No, please let me get this out."

"Okay."

"It was so wrong of me to suggest that you have something more than friendship going on with Eric. I know the two of you have been friends since we were kids, and I don't want to come between you. I don't even have an excuse for my actions other than jealousy. I completely understand if you want to break up with me, but I really, really hope that's not the case."

I was speechless. How often can you find a guy, a teenage guy at that, who will apologize and admit when he's wrong? Alcide was a catch, that was for sure, and I felt lucky that he cared for me.

"Sookie?" he asked when I didn't answer.

"I don't want to break up with you," I blurted out.

"Really?"

"Really. Thank you for apologizing to me, and I want you to know that I accept it, but this can't happen again. You have to trust me."

"I will."

"I wanted to tell you that if you want to start giving me rides in the morning that's fine."

"Eric's okay with that?"

"Yes, he's fine with it. But I'd like it if he still took me home, since he comes to my house after school anyway."

"That's fine," Alcide said, sounding much happier.

I told him what time to be there Monday morning, and then we got off the phone so I could eat. Eric made us some sandwiches and got a movie started, and we veged out again on the couch for a while before we fell asleep next to each other.

* * *

**Must say that I am totally loving writing this story. I'm already up to chapter 6!! It's coming at me pretty fast at the moment, and I'm a take-it-and-run kinda girl, so this story is getting all my attention at the moment. As always, none of my other stories are really on the backburner, I just focus on one or two at a time :) **

**Big thank you to my beta FDM, who kicks ass! **

**Please let me know what you think! Are you as torn between Eric and Alcide as Sookie and I are? Cause believe me, we are... ;-)**


	4. Valentine's Day

**Chapter 4 - Valentine's Day**

By February not a whole lot had changed. Alcide took me to school every morning, and after an awkward start, he and I got used to it. Eric did too. I will admit that it was nice to be greeted with a kiss every morning.

I didn't see Eric as much on weekends because Alcide and I were spending so much time together. After the football season ended, Alcide started taking me on more dates. I found myself caring very deeply for him, but I wasn't sure what I thought about that yet.

Despite not seeing Eric as much, things between us were still great. At least to me they were. The only difference in our relationship was the time I spent with Alcide.

When Valentines Day came around, my world turned upside down. Alcide asked me to spend it with him at his house, where he planned on making us dinner. His parents were out of town for another week, so we'd be all by ourselves.

"I still don't like this," Eric said again as I was getting ready for the date.

"I know you don't like this, but I still can't figure out why," I replied. "He's going to cook me dinner, we'll watch a movie, and then he'll bring me home."

He snorted.

"What? What do you think is going to happen?"

"I just don't like that his parents aren't going to be there," he said.

"It's Valentine's Day. We're supposed to be alone," I reasoned.

He didn't say anything else.

Alcide arrived a few minutes later with a single rose for me and one for Gran. She thanked him for the flower and after I told her and Eric goodbye, we were out the door and into his truck.

"So what did you cook me?" I asked.

"I'm attempting pasta," he said.

"Attempting?" I asked as I quirked an eyebrow.

"I'm just going to warn you not to expect fine cuisine or anything."

"I'll try to hold back my excitement," I joked, causing him to laugh and take my hand in his. He was doing that a lot more lately. In his truck, walking into the school, between classes.

When we arrived at his house he got out and opened the door for me like he always did, and again I was struck by his good manners. I don't know why, but it always surprised me that a boy like Alcide could be so incredibly sweet. Just from his description anyone would peg him for a stuck-up asshole, but he simply wasn't.

He took my hand after helping me out of the truck, and we went inside. As soon as the front door closed I realized I was in a house, alone, with my boyfriend. It was a little strange, but I didn't get any weird vibes from it. It was simply a situation I'd never been in. We went into the kitchen where he had out all the ingredients for spaghetti.

"What can I help with?" I asked.

"Nothing," he smiled. "You can sit and watch, or you can relax in the living room until it's done."

"I'll sit and watch then," I said and took a seat at the island.

For some strange reason, it seemed to be a turn on watching him cook. He rolled up his sleeves, which showed off his muscular forearms, and I found myself watching his hands a lot. He had big, strong hands. We started talking while he cooked, and I was feeling a lot less awkward about being alone in the house with him. Eventually I convinced him to let me make the garlic bread, and I found that cooking side by side with him was even more of a turn on.

When it was almost done, Alcide set the table, which I wouldn't really call a table. I mean, it was a table, but it had to set at least fifteen people. It was made out of some kind of heavy wood, and had a dark finish. He only set two seats at one end of it. There was gorgeous china, and I'm sure the silverware was actual silver. He even lit two candles. It was very sweet.

I helped him put the food on the table, and after we toasted to Valentines Day with Sprite in champagne glasses, we began eating. The food… well… it wasn't that great. At all. My garlic bread turned out great, and it was really delicious, but I had to force the spaghetti down. I'm still not quite sure what he did to it, it was almost sweet. About halfway through the spaghetti, Alcide coughed, and immediately took my plate.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Stop eating that. It's gross," he laughed. "We have frozen pizza, and that sounds infinitely better at the moment."

"It's not that bad," I laughed.

"Yes it is. I'm surprised you ate as much as you did. I could barely force it down. Your garlic bread was fantastic though," he said as he dumped the remaining spaghetti in the trash and set the oven to pre-heat.

"What did you do to it?" I asked as I hopped up on the counter.

He walked over to me and stepped between my knees, placing his hands on my hips as he did. The skirt of my dress rode up a little, and I blushed.

"I have no idea, what I did, but I certainly won't be doing it again," he said, and then leaned forward slightly to kiss me.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him back. Slowly, I inched forward on the counter until I was flush against him, and I felt something rather stiff in his pants. My eyes widened, and I pulled away just as the oven beeped that it was ready. As he put the pizza in, I jumped off the counter and went to the dining room to start collecting our dishes. A minute later he came over to help me, and after we put the dishes in the sink we went to the living room to watch some television while the pizza baked.

Well, we started out watching something, but soon enough we were making out, and I found that the second time around I wasn't as surprised by the bulge in his jeans. It wasn't like he was pulling it out at wiggling it at me or anything. He actually seemed to be trying to ignore it.

We'd made out before, and I'd certainly known he was aroused before, but this was the first time that my mind was imagining the things we could be doing with that arousal. I was just starting to think about approaching some of those thought for real when the oven beeped. We pulled apart, both of us breathing heavily, and Alcide got up to get the pizza.

While I waited I straightened out my dress and patted down my hair. I also took off my shoes. They were heels, and with all the making out I wanted to be able to put my feet up, but I was afraid they would harm the beautiful leather couch. Alcide then returned with two plates of pizza and two new sodas. We toasted again, this time with the soda in a can, and devoured our pizza.

"Oh yes, this is much better," he said after he took a very large bite.

I giggled and snuggled next to him on the couch, tucking my feet under me as I did. We watched a cheesy movie while eating our pizza, and I was happy as could be. I never thought I would be able to enjoy myself like that with anyone other than Eric, but there I was, doing just that. Since being with Alcide, my pining for Eric had dulled a bit. I still had those fleeting thoughts at times, but for the most part I focused on Alcide.

After we ate, Alcide got up and left the room for a minute before returning with a small box.

"I thought we said no gifts," I said.

"We did, but I saw this and got it for you anyway. Please don't hate me," he said with those big puppy dog eyes, and I couldn't help but forgive him.

I smiled and took the lid off the box. It was a beautiful silver necklace with a heart-shaped pendant on the chain.

"Oh, Alcide!" I said as I took it out of the box. "It's so beautiful."

I quickly put it on, and then gave him a kiss. "Thank you so much."

"I'm glad you like it," he smiled, and then he seemed really nervous.

"What's wrong?"

"I have something I want to tell you," he said as he took my hands in his.

"Okay," I said, suddenly feeling nervous.

"I love you," he said, and my mind immediately began to race.

I was internally freaking out. It was such a wonderful thing to hear, and it really did warm me up from the inside, but I knew I couldn't say it back. I may have only been seventeen, but I was pretty sure I knew what love felt like, and it wasn't what I felt for Alcide. I cared for him, deeply, but I didn't love him.

"You don't have to say it back," he said, breaking me from my thoughts.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I really care for you, I do. I'm not sure it's love though. I don't want to say it if I don't mean it."

"It's okay, really. I just wanted you to know how I felt, and as long as you're not breaking up with me, everything is fine," he said with an awkward smile.

"I'm not breaking up with you," I said. "It really means something though, to know how you feel. It's nice to be cared for in that way."

He pulled me to him and kissed me softly. As I kissed him back, that soft kiss became much harder, and soon we were full-on making out again. I'm not sure how long we kissed, but I seemed to get lost in my feelings while we did. All I could think about was that this beautiful, amazing gentleman _loved_ me, and before I knew it we were moving and I was being laid down on his bed. I felt safe there, surrounded by his scent and covered by his body. He loved me, and he would never hurt me.

Suddenly, I realized that we were pulling each other's clothes off, and I pulled back. A haze seemed to lift from Alcide's eyes, and he jumped back too.

"I'm so sorry," he apologized. "I… I didn't mean for this to go this far. I'll even take you home right now if you want."

I sat there against his headboard breathing heavily and looking him right in the eyes. He was telling the truth. Alcide never would have planned something like this, and he really would take me home if I asked him to. Did I want him to? That was the question. I was more surprised that we'd gone so far than appalled at myself for it. What surprised me most was how right it felt. Alcide loved me, so it wouldn't be wrong to have my first time with him, would it? I cared for him deeply, so perhaps it could grow to love.

I didn't ask him to drive me home. Instead, I moved to the end of the bed where he was sitting, and pulled him back down on top of me.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked between kisses and the removal of clothes.

"Yes," I breathed in return. I was struggling with my dress zipper when his hands came up to my face, gently forcing me to look him in the eyes.

"Sookie…" he began, "Are you _sure_ about this?"

"Yes," I said again, and covered his lips with mine.

We fumbled getting each other's clothes off, and soon enough we were naked as the day we were born. My modesty kicked in, and I tried to cover myself. Alcide took pity on me and switched his lamp off so we were cloaked in darkness. He kissed me until our eyes got used to the light adjustment enough for us to see each other.

I felt him against my thigh, and pulled away quickly again.

"What is it?" He asked urgently. "Do you want to stop?"

"No, I just… do you have… you know… protection?" I asked.

"Oh! Jeez, I'm sorry. Yes, hang on," he said, and got up from the bed. I made out his form walking into the bathroom and heard him rummage around a bit, and then he came back to the bed with a box.

"If you don't mind me asking, why do you have those?" I asked.

"My dad got them for me last month. He asked me one morning if I was still dating you, and then that night he came in here and tossed this box on the bed. Said I didn't need to be getting you knocked up."

I hung my head a little. Did his father think I was white trash or something? I'd only met him once, and he was a perfect gentleman to me. Alcide lifted my chin.

"My dad's a jerk, Sookie. He only acts like a dad during football season. Don't worry about it, okay?"

"Okay," I said.

We began kissing again, this time more slowly, and before I knew it we were both reaching for the box at the same time. I got it open, and handed him one.

"Have you ever done this before?" I asked.

"No, you know I'm a virgin right? I've told you that, haven't I?" he asked, sounding concerned.

"Yeah, I know that. I meant the condom," I laughed.

"Oh! Um… just on a banana in school," he said.

"Do you need the light on?" I asked.

"No, I can see. I have great eyesight in the dark," he said, and I attempted to cover myself again. "You're beautiful, Sookie. Don't cover up."

I stilled and smiled. I heard the wrapper rip open, and watched him roll the condom on himself. As soon as it was on he was back above me, and kissing me sweetly again. I felt him between my legs, and he braced himself on his arms above me.

"Are you ready?" he asked.

"Yes," I said.

I want to say my first time was spectacular, romantic… everything I dreamed it would be… but it wasn't. It hurt like a son of a bitch, and didn't last very long. Alcide went slow at first, but as soon as he was in it was like he thought all my pain was over, and he moved a bit too quickly a bit too soon. I'm sure he was just overwhelmed and nervous, but that didn't take away my soreness. As soon as he finished he rolled off of me and lay next to me, breathing heavily.

After his breathing steadied out, he rolled on his side to face me.

"Are you okay?" he asked as he put his hand on my stomach.

"Um… I'm a little sore, but I'm fine," I whispered.

"Did you… you know," he asked gently.

I shook my head. "No, but I didn't expect to… being the first time and all."

"I'm sorry. I was nervous and you felt so good…" he said, and I blushed. "Let me make it up to you."

I nodded, and then felt the hand that was resting on my stomach move down between my thighs. He kissed me as his fingers found my most sensitive spot and began rubbing slow circles on the bundle of nerves. As my breathing increased he moved his lips to my neck and picked up the pace of his circles. I held onto his shoulders tightly as my pleasure increased, and he pressed a little harder. That was all it took to send me over the edge, and I cried out with my release.

Alcide smiled and his lips moved back to mine, where he kissed me over and over.

"Thank you," I said when he pulled away.

"No, thank you, Sookie," he said. "I love you."

About an hour later Alcide drove me home. He walked me to the door and kissed me goodnight like he always did, but there was something more in his kiss that time. His confession of love really did something to him, and I wish I could say it had done something for me too, but it hadn't.

I floated inside as if on a breeze, still a bit high from the euphoria of my first sexual experience. Gran had already gone to bed, and Eric wasn't there. I walked into my room, and sitting on the edge of my bed was a box of chocolates and a Valentines card. I plopped down on the bed, and picked up the card. I couldn't believe I'd forgotten all about mine and Eric's tradition to get each other the stupidest, most cheesy Valentine's card, and the cheapest box of chocolates we could find. I opened the card and smiled at his beautiful handwriting.

_Sookie,_

_Even though you're someone else's, you'll always be my Valentine._

_Eric_

All of a sudden I was crying. I desperately tried to stop, but I couldn't. I had a boyfriend that loved me, and we had just taken a major step in our relationship. I should have been happy, but I wasn't.

It finally hit me. I was still very deeply in love with Eric. I had thought that being with Alcide would help me get over it, but it hadn't. It distracted me a little, but I wasn't over Eric, not by a long shot.

I wanted Eric to be the one to make me a shitty dinner on Valentines Day and tell me that he loved me. I wanted Eric to be my first, but he never would be. He had been the furthest thing from my mind when I made the decision to sleep with Alcide, and I was so caught up in the moment that I didn't stop to really think about the repercussions. It wasn't fair to Alcide. I had been his first as well, and his feelings were much deeper than mine. Suddenly I felt sick and ran to the bathroom in just enough time to throw up my dinner.

After all the contents of my stomach had been released I took a long, hot shower. I felt like I needed to scrub myself clean of the harm I had caused; the harm to myself, the harm to Alcide, possibly the harm to Eric. I stayed in the shower until the water ran cold, and then got out and pulled on some pajamas.

While I lay in bed, I tried to figure out what to do. After about an hour of pondering I finally figured it out. I had to do the right thing. I had to break things off with Alcide, and I had to tell Eric how I felt. I was sure that Alcide would most likely hate me, and Eric would probably tell me he didn't feel the same, but I also knew that I couldn't be intimate like that with one man, and in love with another. It wasn't right. Yes, breaking up with Alcide would be the right thing to do.

* * *

_So... that was my first Alcide/Sookie lemon, and I kinda liked it *giggles* Seriously, I freaking love Alcide. Make no mistake, Eric is my one and only, but this Alcide is such a close second it's not even funny. I think I may run away with him after Sookie tears out his heart. *sniff* Yeah, I've already written that part, lol. I almost cried. Yes, I am a big baby. _

_HUGE Thank you to Fardareismai2, my beta and mentor. I wouldn't still be writing without her amazing self. She's awesomesauce. Also thanks to Sunkisz and Krismom for always encouraging me with this story. You two are the bee's knees :-) _

**FYI- I just published a one-shot for the Naughty or Nice contest! You can read it here(remove spaces): _http://www . fanfiction . net/s/5658052/1/_Please let me know what you think of it! **

**Check out the contest and participate here: _http://www . fanfiction . net/u/2163083/Naughty_or_Nice_List_ Deadline is the 17th, so you still have some time!**

**Attn: SVM readers and writers! SVM Teaser Mondays is still going strong! Get a sneak peak at what is coming up on your favorite fics! Any SVM writer can post a teaser! Subscribe to the thread here (remove spaces): http: // forum. fanfiction. net/ topic/ 55534/19191439/1/**

_Okay, that's all. Now, what did you think? I absolutely LOVE to hear everyone's thought about this story! Thank you so much for taking the time to review :-)_


	5. Devastation

**Chapter 5 - Devastation**

I woke up the next morning feeling like I would if I had a hangover. Or at least what I thought a hangover felt like. My head hurt, and it took me a few minutes to remember what had happened the night before. I rolled over to look at my alarm clock and immediately jumped out of bed. I was already a half hour late for my first class. I rushed to get ready and went to find Gran. She was sitting in the kitchen with her coffee and the news on.

"Are you feeling better dear?" she asked.

"I'm fine. I must have forgotten to set my alarm. Didn't Alcide come by to pick me up?"

"Yes, but I heard you get sick last night and assumed you weren't feeling well. He went on to school."

"I'm feeling better now. Would you mind if I took your car to school?" I asked.

"That's fine sweetheart, but make sure you eat something at lunch, you're looking a little flushed."

"I will," I said, and after grabbing her keys I was out the door.

I arrived just in time to get my things and go to second period. The office had given me a tardy slip for being late, but I wasn't concerned about it. You had to get three before it resulted in detention, and that was my first ever. As soon as I sat down in the classroom it hit me that I had this class with Eric. I was suddenly extremely nervous, knowing that I would have to tell him about my feelings for him, soon.

I studiously kept my eyes on the door, and when he walked in he looked straight at my seat, like he wasn't sure if I'd be there or not. For a split-second I could read him, but as soon as he saw me his fucking mask went on and he became unreadable. I'll never forget what I saw in his eyes for that split-second though. He was heartbroken.

Getting through that class was like an anxiety attack from hell. My brain went nuts the whole time trying to decipher that look in Eric's eyes. Did he find out what happened between Alcide and me? If that were the case, why would he look heartbroken? Was I misreading him, or did he feel the same about me? As soon as the bell rang Eric jumped from his seat and high-tailed it out the door before I could even call out his name. I became really worried.

Somehow, I ended up at my locker without realizing it. I shook my head and tried to collect myself, then opened it to get my things for my next class even though all I wanted to do was run to the bathroom and cry. The next thing I knew, Alcide was turning me around and planting a passionate kiss on me. I could feel how much he loved me, and it only made my guilt that much worse. When he finally released me I didn't know what to do or say, but thankfully he spoke first.

"I take it you're feeling better?" he asked.

"Um… yeah, I got sick last night, but I must have slept it off. I'm fine now," I said.

"Good, because I was wondering if you wanted to spend some time with me tonight."

"I don't know," I said, panicking on the inside. "I think I need to rest tonight, but we'll see, okay? I need to talk to you later anyway."

Thankfully, the bell rang before he could ask me what I needed to talk to him about, and we both took off for out next class. I didn't have anymore classes with Eric, and I couldn't seem to find him in the halls between periods. He was absent at lunch, and I briefly wondered if he'd gone home.

At the end of the day I waited outside to see if he'd find me to at least offer me a ride home. If he knew I didn't come with Alcide, I'm sure he knew I had Gran's car, but we hadn't talked all day and I was an emotional mess so I wasn't sure what expect.

I finally spotted him, but what I saw made my heart ache. He was walking to the parking lot with his arm around Pam Ravenscroft's shoulders. In the last couple of months I'd noticed him talking to her a bit more in the halls, but it wasn't anything more than a greeting every now and then, and I didn't think there was anything going on between them. He would have told me; at least I thought he would. I watched them walk to his car, where she stretched up and whispered something in his ear. He smiled and laughed at whatever she said, and then nodded at her. She walked to her car and he got in his where he waited for her to pull out of the parking lot before following her.

My eyes instantly watered and threatened to spill. He hadn't even looked for me. The only thing I could take comfort in was the fact that I could tell, even from far away, that his laugh wasn't genuine. It was his masked laugh, the one he gave everyone but me. That fake laugh was my only piece of hope, and I held onto it tightly.

The next thing I knew, I felt a strong pair of arms wrap around my waist from behind. Alcide's scent engulfed me as he whispered in my ear, "Have you thought about it?"

"Yeah," I said. "I think I should just stay home tonight. I'm feeling a little woozy still."

"Okay," he said sweetly. "What was it you needed to talk to me about?"

Suddenly, breaking up with him didn't seem right anymore. Not when I had no idea what was wrong with Eric. I decided not to say anything to Alcide just yet. We didn't have to have sex again. It felt really selfish, but I didn't want to ruin a potentially great thing if I knew there wasn't a chance Eric would want me. I could grow to love Alcide.

"You know, I don't even remember," I lied with a short laugh. "Nothing to worry about."

He walked me to Gran's car and kissed me goodbye. I drove home feeling sick to my stomach. Even after seeing Eric drive off following Pam, I somehow expected him to be at my house. He'd never just not shown up before. Even so, his car was nowhere to be found when I arrived. I went inside and told Gran that I wasn't feeling well, then went straight to my room.

I tried to call Eric many times, but he never answered and I never left a voicemail. I tried to focus on my homework, and Gran came in at one point with some homemade chicken noodle soup that I forced down so she wouldn't worry. After I got ready for bed, I tried to call Eric once more, and again, he didn't answer.

I cried myself to sleep that night.

Alcide picked me up the next morning for school, and looked so happy just to see me that I knew I needed to tell him something. On the way, I reached over and took his hand.

"I have a question," I began.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Would you be okay with us not having sex for a while?" I asked gently.

He immediately looked at me, and I was thankful we were at a stop sign with no one behind us.

"Did I hurt you?" he asked, completely concerned.

"No, honey. I'm fine, I promise. I just don't think I was really emotionally ready for it," I said.

"I understand," he said, and squeezed my hand. "Do you feel like I pushed you into it?"

"No, of course not! It was my decision, and I didn't feel any pressure at all," I assured him.

"Okay," he said, and then started driving again.

As soon as he helped me out of the truck like he always did, he gave me a long, tight hug, and whispered into my ear, "I love you so much, and I would never hurt you. I love you, Sookie."

His words were like a knife in my heart, and I explained the tears away by telling him how much they meant to me.

When I saw Eric in my second period class, he didn't seem as upset as the day before. I almost got up to talk to him before the class started, but I heard a couple of gossips behind me whispering, and their words stopped me.

"Did you hear about Eric and Pam?" one whispered.

"Yes! She said she finally got him and that he's amazing in bed," the other whispered back before they both started gigging.

My heart stopped for a second, and then proceeded to beat faster than it should. I felt like I had been punched in the gut, and before I could stop it, I let out a choked sob. I embarrassedly gathered up my things, and ran out of the room with tears streaming down my face, desperately avoiding Eric's gaze.

I stood in the hall for a second trying to decide what to do. I couldn't leave campus without signing out, and unless you were a senior you needed permission from a parent or guardian. My only option was the bathroom. I ran there as fast as possible, and as soon as I entered one of the stalls I threw up in the toilet. After that rather intimate session, I sat on the floor of the stall, hugged my knees to my chest, and cried my eyes out. I didn't even notice that someone had come in until I heard a voice softly calling my name.

"Sookie, open the door," he said.

I reached up and unlocked the stall door, and Eric pushed it open.

"Jesus, Sookie," he said as he got on his knees and pulled me to him. "Are you pregnant?" he asked.

"No! What the hell?"

"Gran said you got sick the other night, and you just ran out of class to throw up. I just assumed…"

"Well, you assumed wrong," I said, pushing him away from me.

"I'm sorry," he said, suddenly sounding… afraid? "Alcide said…"

I cut him off. "What did Alcide say?"

"A bunch of the guys were asking him how Valentines Day went, and he said it was fine, but then someone asked how the sex was."

"What did he say?" I asked calmly.

"Nothing. He just told them to mind their own business. I pulled him off to the side and asked, and since he thought you would have told me already, he confirmed it."

I began to cry again. "It was just once," I said, and saw him visibly flinch.

"Why are you crying?" he asked.

"It was a mistake. It was all a big mistake. I don't love him, and it never should have happened," I confessed. Eric let out a breath, seemingly relieved, and pulled me into a hug again. I relaxed in his arms for just a second, before I remembered what I heard in the classroom.

"Where were you last night?" I asked, and he stiffened. I pulled away from him again and continued, my anger and hurt growing. "I tried to call you."

He stared at me for a short moment, regret brewing behind his eyes. "I was with Pam," he said in a tight sort of voice.

"You slept with her?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.

He nodded once, and that was all it took for my heart to shatter. It was all I needed to know. He didn't love me, and would never want me. I know now how selfish it was to think that, especially since I had just slept with my boyfriend, but that was how I felt.

I removed myself from his grasp completely, and my own mask went on.

"About time you got yourself a girlfriend, Northman," I said, appalled at my own words.

"She's not my girlfriend, Sookie. It probably won't even happen again," he said as he brushed some stray hairs from my face. The motion was so tender and sweet… I couldn't take it. I had to get out of there and away from him.

"So, will you be available to take me home after school today?" I asked as I stepped back into the stall to grab my things. He looked confused and hurt, but nodded anyway. "Okay then, I'll meet you at your car after school," I said, and immediately turned on my heel and left the bathroom.

He didn't follow.

* * *

**Soooo... here's the deal. I have Chapter 6 all edited and pretty and ready to update. It's a much longer chapter, and it offers Eric's POV of alllll of this... so, yeah. Review like crazy chicks and I'll put it up later tonight ;-)**


	6. Eff My Life

**Chapter 6 - Eff My Life**

By February, my life had changed significantly. Alcide started taking Sookie to school every morning, and I still wasn't used to it. Most mornings I got halfway to Sookie's house before remembering that it wasn't my job to pick her up anymore. I pretended to be okay with it. When Sookie told me about her fight with Alcide I had a little hope, but when she told me the fight was about me I knew I had to suck it up.

I was probably about twelve when I heard that saying, "If you love something, set it free. If it comes back, it's yours, and if it doesn't, it never was in the first place."

I knew that was what I had to do in this situation. I had to let her go and experience her relationship with Alcide, and if she fell in love with him then it was meant to be, and I'd let her be happy. If, however, it didn't work and they broke up, then I would know I had a fighting chance. Most of all, I knew I couldn't intentionally plant seeds of doubt in her mind about Alcide. He was a good guy, and he simply had the guts to ask her out before I did. That was something I had to live with.

I didn't get to see Sookie as much on weekends since Alcide monopolized all her time, and when football season ended he started taking her on more dates during the week. I had to watch her fall for him, and it was killing me. The only thing I could do was act like everything was still normal between us, which was hard. I even got to the point that I began indulging Pam in her little flirtations with me. It was only a few "hellos" and lending her a pen in class, but I found that small amount of attention was helping me cope better.

Valentine's Day was shitty that year. Sookie walked into school with a rose, and there was one inside her locker between classes, as well as one waiting at her seat in every class. By the end of the day she had a dozen, and she couldn't stop smiling. I have no idea how Alcide pulled it off, but I was jealous as hell.

Sookie and I had always laughed at the holiday and made a tradition to buy each other the cheesiest card, and the cheapest box of chocolates we could find. I got mine for her, but I wasn't sure if she was still going to do the same, so I planned to leave it on her bed after she left for her date with Alcide.

Just thinking about that date upsets me. He'd asked her to dinner at his house, and his parents weren't going to be home. Now, I knew that Alcide cared for Sookie deeply, and I knew he would never pressure her into anything she didn't want to do, but at the end of the day, he was still a hormonal, teenage guy. A hormonal, teenage guy, alone in a house with a hormonal, teenage girl… things could happen.

I tried to express my concern to Sookie again while she was getting ready for the date, but she seemed annoyed by it. Sookie never got annoyed with me, so I shut up.

_You love her, so let her go,_ my mind kept repeating, but I was getting tired of doing that.

Alcide arrived on time… again. He also came inside to get Sookie and say hello to Gran. The perfect gentleman. Again. Why couldn't he just slip up or something? Sookie made her goodbyes and left, and after that I put the card and box of chocolates on her bed and wished Gran a goodnight. I couldn't stay and watch her come home looking so happy again. Every smile he coaxed from her was like a pinprick to my heart.

I think I lay in bed for a couple of hours that night before falling asleep. Something in my gut was telling me that nothing would ever be the same, but I was doing my best to ignore it.

I woke up the next morning with that same bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, and somehow I just knew it would be a bad day. That shit was set during first period. I hadn't seen Sookie at her locker so I was a little worried when I went to weightlifting. The football players did weights year-round, so it was always my first class of the day. When I walked into the weight room a bunch of the guys were already stretching and talking. I joined in and noticed that Alcide didn't look worried, so I assumed that Sookie was fine.

"So how was Valentine's Day with Sookie?" Tray asked Alcide. I liked Tray. He was another good guy, and had been with his girlfriend Amelia since freshman year.

"It was great. We had dinner and watched a couple movies. I gave her a necklace, and then took her home," Alcide replied, and I felt relieved.

"Yeah… and how was the sex? Don't act like you ain't hitting that," Bill said, and I took a deep breath so I could lay into him for it, but Alcide beat me to it.

"Why don't you mind your own business, Bill. That's my girlfriend you're talking about, and you won't disrespect her like that in front of me," he said angrily.

Bill put up his hands in that 'I'm innocent' gesture, and Alcide shook his head and headed for the bench press. I got up and followed him, curiosity getting the best of me.

"Need a spotter?" I asked.

He looked at me like he was surprised, but nodded. I helped him put the weights on the bar, and decided to go for it while the other guys were still stretching.

"Look, man… I know we're not the best of friends, but we do both care about Sookie…" I started, and he surprised me by cutting me off.

"Yes, we do, and I'd appreciate it if we kept it from the team that she and I are having sex," he said quietly, but for all my brain knew his words were as loud as an explosion. He continued when I didn't speak, "We both know how they are, and I really don't want it getting around. Sookie's got it hard enough with the popular girls being bitches to her for dating me, the last thing she needs is them having that ammo."

I couldn't speak.

"Eric? You alright?" I heard Alcide ask. I shook my head as if to clear it, but his words would not stop repeating themselves in my brain.

"You two are having sex?" I said without thinking.

He looked a little taken aback.

"Yeah… You didn't know? I'm sorry, I thought she would have told you by now," he said.

_By now_…

How long had they been doing it? Why would Sookie do something like that? It didn't seem like her. Did I even know her anymore? Is that why she was so unbothered about being alone in his house with him?

"No," I said. "It's okay. Secret's safe, man."

I don't know how I got through that hour, but I felt like I was drowning the whole time. It hurt to breathe. As I walked to my next class I remembered that I had it with Sookie, and I wondered if she'd be there. I couldn't help looking right at her seat as soon as I walked in, and sure enough there she was. She looked like hell and seemed to be anticipating my arrival. I masked my emotions and sat down.

My mind raced throughout class. She looked like she knew that I knew. I wondered if Alcide had told her between classes that he'd let it slip to me. Did she think I would be pissed at her for not telling me? Something finally clicked, and I knew… she loved him. Sookie would never do something like that unless she was in love.

That was that. I had let her go, and she'd fallen in love, so she wasn't really mine to begin with. There was nothing else to it. Now I had to step back and let her be happy… no matter how much it hurt.

As soon as the bell rang, I bolted for the door. I couldn't face her yet. I just couldn't. I was about halfway to my next class when I realized I had forgotten to get my book from my locker, so I doubled back. My locker was just across the hall from Sookie's, and when I got to it I saw Sookie standing at hers. Alcide came up behind her and turned her around before planting a kiss on her perfect lips.

Lucky bastard.

I tore my eyes away, quickly retrieved my book, and took off for my class again. I had my next class with none other than Pam Ravenscroft, and as soon as I saw her I knew what I had to do. The only way to get over a girl like Sookie was to become infatuated with a new one. Pam wasn't anywhere near the type of girl I wanted to end up with, but she was willing, and that was all that mattered.

I briefly wondered when I had allowed myself to start thinking about women like this, and my bitter, heartbroken inner voice supplied the answer.

_When the girl you love tore your heart out a stomped on it._

Maybe she hadn't quite done that, but it certainly felt that way.

I had to suck it up and deal. Pam was smiling at me and said hello politely. I sat at my desk and turned to face her since she sat directly behind me.

"Hi, Pam. How are you today?" I asked, and was happy with the surprised look on her face, followed quickly by a seductive smile.

"I'm just wonderful today. How are you?"

"A little sore from weights this morning. Nothing a hot shower won't remedy," I added, hoping she'd pick up on what I was doing. She was no fool, that's for sure.

"Now that just sounds like fun," she said, and then the bell rang, so we had to quit talking. I still felt her eyes on the back of my head for the rest of the class.

After the bell rang again at the end of class, I got up and turned to Pam.

"Don't forget to bring a pen to chem. I think I'm out of extras. I suppose we could share mine though."

"Don't worry. I'll come prepared," she said with a smirk as she walked past me and out the classroom.

I had the whole next hour in study hall, and all I did was think about what I was going to do with Pam, and whether or not I should go through with it. I kept coming back to the same conclusion. Sookie obviously loved Alcide, so I had no chance. There was nothing else keeping me from doing it.

Lunch was next, and I knew Sookie would be there, so I skipped and spent the whole thing in the library pretending that I had to do research for a paper. My next class was Chemistry, and I knew I'd have to continue flirting with Pam so I tried to get in the right mindset. I took a deep breath when the bell rang, and headed off for the class quickly so I could avoid running into Sookie.

When I walked into Chemistry, Pam was sitting in the seat next to mine and I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Clancy wanted to trade partners for the lab today," she offered with another smirk.

"I'm glad Clancy did," I said as I sat down on the stool next to her.

I managed to successfully flirt with her the whole hour, and by the end of the period I had an invitation to her house after school.

I accepted.

She was waiting for me outside the school after the final bell rang, and I put my arm around her shoulders as we walked to the parking lot. The only reason I did it was because another couple walked by doing the same thing. Pam responded by wrapping her arm around my waist, and I wasn't quite sure I liked it. It felt strange.

"So, would you just like to follow me to my house?" Pam asked.

"That sounds good to me," I said as we reached my car.

Pam stretched up to whisper in my ear, "You could always just fuck me in your car."

I wasn't sure how to respond to that, so I laughed.

"Your house will do just fine, Pam," I said quickly, and nodded in the direction of her vehicle.

She smirked… again… and walked to her car. I got in mine, and waited for her to pull out before following her. Almost as soon as we were on the highway I remembered that I always drove Sookie home from school. I almost gave into the urge to turn around and see if she needed a ride, but then I remembered that she had Alcide… the boyfriend she was sleeping with. I knew he would give her a ride, so I continued to follow Pam.

We pulled up to Pam's giant house about ten minutes later. I wasn't sure what her parents did for a living, but I did know that they were always traveling, which enabled Pam to have parties all the time and take boys to her house. I got out of my car and followed her inside. I'd never actually been to her house before.

"Your house is huge," I observed while looking around at the big rooms and the high ceilings.

"Yeah…" she said, and then took my hand to lead me somewhere. I followed her up the stairs, and into what I assumed was her bedroom, where she pushed me onto the bed.

Before I could say anything, her lips were on mine and she was pushing me back onto the pillows. My brain was trying to keep up with what was happening, so it took me a minute to take control and roll her onto her back. I couldn't believe I'd just had my first kiss with Pam Ravenscroft: School Doorknob. In the back of my mind I knew my body was enjoying it, but all I could really think about was how disgusted I was with myself. I was raised better than to use a woman like this, no matter how inclined the woman may be.

Pam didn't seem to want to waste any time, and pulled my head back to hers for another kiss. She was a very skilled kisser, massaging my tongue with hers with just the right amount of pressure to make me want more. Soon, her hands made their way down to my pants where she started to undo my belt buckle, but I stopped her. I was still trying to convince myself to actually go through with it. She took the hand I stopped her with and placed it on her breast. I massaged it lightly and then moved it down to her waist. I couldn't deal with all the stimulation.

She didn't protest too much, and simply kept kissing me like an expert, every once in a while grinding her body against mine. Eventually, her hands went to my buckle again, and again, I stopped her. She pulled away that time.

"If you aren't going to fuck me, then what are you doing here?" she asked breathlessly.

That's when it hit me. I wasn't going to fuck her. I couldn't. I didn't even know why I thought I could get over Sookie like that. I was seventeen for fuck's sake. If Sookie and Alcide didn't break up by the time we all went to college then I'd start dating, but screwing Pam wasn't going to help me get over her.

"I'm sorry," I said, and got up off the bed.

"You're sorry?" she asked as she sat up. "Eric, I'm offering you no-strings-attached sex, and you're apologizing?"

"Yes. I shouldn't have let you think I wanted this."

"And why don't you?"

"Because I'm not the kind of guy that has no-strings-attached sex."

"Then why did you come here?"

I wondered if I could tell Pam the truth. The longer this conversation lasted, the less upset she seemed.

"Because I thought it was the only thing to do," I said.

"Cut the bullshit. You never gave me the time of day until your little goody-two-shoes "friend" started dating Alcide, and even then it was just a hello every once in a while. Then today you all of a sudden decide that screwing me was the only thing to do? Again… why?"

Huh. Pam was smarter than I gave her credit for. I didn't know what to say. I could tell she didn't like Sookie, so I couldn't tell her that Sookie and Alcide were sleeping together. She'd use that against her. Apparently, I'd wasted too much time trying to decide what to tell her, and she'd been able to read my mind.

"You love her," she said nonchalantly. "Son of a bitch. You're in love with Goody, and she's dating pretty boy goody. So you thought the only way to get over it was to sleep with me? You're an idiot, but you get points for not going through with it. That's never happened before, and because of that, I'm going to help you."

"What?" I asked, feeling like I was in the end of one of those movies where one character reveals the whole plot and everyone else is struck dumb for a few seconds.

"Well, I'm also going to help her in the process because if a boy ever loved me enough to say no to someone like me, then I'd hope someone helped him get me too."

"You're gonna have to take a few steps back and explain some things," I said as I sat down in her desk chair.

"I want to help you get Sookie," she said.

"But I thought you had a thing for me?" I asked, and she snorted.

"Eric, you're hot, I'll give you that, but the only reason I wanted to screw you was because I thought Goody was. You were like an ungettable-get, and I wanted the inside scoop."

"Why are you talking in journalism terms? And stop calling Sookie, Goody."

"Look, the one surefire way to get a girl to act, is to get her jealous," she said.

"And how do you propose we get Sookie jealous? I don't even know if she has feelings for me."

"Trust me, she does. That girl is so head over heels for you it's a wonder boy-goody doesn't explode with jealousy."

"Sookie doesn't love me. She's my best friend. I think I'd be able to tell."

She snorted. "From an objective perspective, it's obvious that you two have loved each other since junior high. Why do you think everyone thought you two were dating?"

"What exactly are you proposing we do?" I asked cautiously.

"Make her realize that you aren't going to sit around and wait forever. I'll start a rumor tomorrow that you and I had sex, and it'll spread and get back to Sookie," she said.

"What good would it do to make her think you and I are having sex?"

"She's a woman, Eric. If she's anything like what I think she is, she'll get jealous and start examining her relationship with Alcide, then she'll realize that she doesn't care for him the way she does you and she'll break it off with him. That's when you make your move."

I was still unconvinced, and felt like my brain was too muddled to be making a decision like this. If she was right, and Sookie really loved me, then hearing that I had slept with Pam would hurt her as much as me hearing she slept with Alcide hurt me. And then Pam said the one thing that convinced me.

"Come on, Eric. What have you got to lose?"

I didn't have anything to lose. If it didn't work, she'd continue to be with Alcide, and if we didn't do it, then she'd continue to be with Alcide. It wasn't my most honorable moment by a long shot, but I agreed to it.

"Okay. But if this gets screwed up Pam… if this messes with mine and Sookie's friendship…"

"It won't, but I get what you're saying. You'll never talk to me again, blah, blah, blah. You didn't talk to me before. Just trust me. All you have to do is stay quiet, and if Sookie asks if it's true, say yes. That's all. You can' handle that, can't you?"

I rolled my eyes and stood up. "Yes, I can handle that. Goodbye, Pam."

I went out to my car and took a deep breath. I was so relieved I hadn't gone through with it, and drove away from her house as fast as I could. I rested my head on the steering wheel for a second when I got home, and noticed my cell phone light blinking. I'd left it in the cup holder all day.

Sitting back in the seat, I picked up the phone and looked at my messages. I had two missed calls from Sookie. My stomach sunk. I'd never missed a night at her house before, and after avoiding her at school all day, I could only imagine what was going through her mind. Still, I couldn't bring myself to call her. I called Gran instead.

The line rang a few times before Gran picked up. "Hello?"

"Hey, Gran. It's Eric," I said.

"Hello, dear. Are you feeling alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I just wanted to apologize for missing dinner tonight. I didn't want you and Sookie worrying."

"I just assumed you weren't feeling well too," she said.

"Too?" I asked.

"Well Sookie got sick the other night, and when she got home from school today she said she wasn't feeling well and went straight to her room. I thought maybe you were sick too since you weren't with her."

I hadn't known Sookie didn't feel well, and suddenly I felt like a supreme asshole and a really shitty friend. I shouldn't have ignored her all day.

"I'm feeling fine, I promise. I'll be there tomorrow after school and you can see for yourself," I added, knowing Gran wouldn't be convinced unless she could feed me some of her homemade chicken noodle soup.

"Alright dear. Thank you for letting me know you're okay," she said.

"No problem, Gran."

After I got off the phone with Gran, I went inside and straight to my room. My Aunt and Uncle were home, but they rarely asked me questions. They were diligent about getting my report cards and keeping up with the team during football season so they could congratulate me if we won, but for the most part they let me do as I pleased.

I forced myself to focus on my homework until it was done, and as soon as I was done my phone rang again. Cheap Trick filled the room, and I panicked a little. Sookie's ringtone. I didn't think I could talk to her yet, but at the same time I wanted to ease her mind because I was sure she was wondering what was up with me. Before I could decide, the phone stopped ringing. She didn't leave me a voicemail, so I decided not to call her back.

I went to bed soon after, without eating dinner. I was too nervous about what could happen the next day to even think about food. It took me a while to go to sleep, but I finally drifted away.

I had forgotten to set my alarm, so I woke up just in time to get ready and make it to school before the tardy bell rang. I managed to see Pam in the hall before I made it to weights, and she gave me a smirk and a wink. I was suddenly nervous again, and avoided Alcide that whole first hour even though I caught him staring at me curiously a lot.

I walked into my second period class with what I hoped was a more controlled expression than the day before. Sookie was sitting in her seat and her eyes met mine again as soon as I walked in. She looked as nervous as I felt.

I sat down and got my book out, and was thinking about getting up to talk to Sookie before the teacher came in but before I could she ran past me, and I wasn't completely sure, but it looked like she was crying. She tore out of the room, and I stood up to follow her, but the teacher stopped me.

"Where do you think you are going, Mr. Northman?" she asked.

I knew she wouldn't let me go after a girl, so I immediately clutched my abdomen and groaned.

"Nurse…" I groaned out. "It could be my appendix."

The teacher was older, and trusted her students way too much, so she believed me.

"Can you make it there on your own?" she asked.

I nodded and she filled out a hall pass for me. I gathered up my things, and gratefully took the slip of paper from her. When I got into the hall and around the corner, I tried to figure out where Sookie would have gone. She couldn't leave because she didn't have a car, and she'd need Gran's permission anyway. The only place I could think of would have been the bathroom, so I went there. I stood in front of the girls' bathroom door for a minute, trying to get up the nerve to go inside. It was just a room, but it was always such a forbidden place to go. I cracked the door slightly and heard her crying, which made the decision for me.

"Sookie?" I called out quietly as I walked in. All the stall doors were open except for the handicapped one, and I could see her sitting on the floor with her knees pulled up to her chest.

"Sookie, open the door," I said. She quieted, and then I heard the tiny bar slide back. I pushed the door open. I took in the image before me. Sookie was sitting in front of the toilet, her eyes were red and puffy, and I could see that she'd just thrown up because she hadn't flushed yet.

Suddenly, it hit me, and my heart broke even more. She was pregnant. Gran said she'd gotten sick the other night, and now she was running out of class to throw up. That was why she was crying. Holy hell.

"Jesus, Sookie," I said and joined her on the floor before pulling her into a hug. "Are you pregnant?" I asked before I could stop myself.

"No! What the hell?"

I don't think I'd ever been more relieved in my life.

"Gran said you got sick the other night, and you just ran out of class to throw up. I just assumed…"

"Well, you assumed wrong," she said and pushed me away from her.

"I'm sorry," I said, afraid I'd offended her, and then I wondered if that meant she wasn't having sex. What if Alcide lied because, like Pam said, he was jealous? "Alcide said…"

"What did Alcide say?" she asked.

"A bunch of the guys were asking him how Valentine's Day went, and he said it was fine, but then someone asked how the sex was."

"What did he say?" she asked calmly and quietly.

"Nothing. He just told them to mind their own business. I was going to ask him, but he thought you told me already and he confirmed it."

Slowly, the tears started falling from her eyes again. "It was just once," she said, confirming my fear.

"Why are you crying," I asked. She would only do that with someone she loved, or so I thought, so I didn't understand what all the tears and puking was for.

"It was a mistake. It was all a big mistake. I don't love him, and it never should have happened," she said, and I let out a breath I wasn't aware I was holding and pulled her into a hug again. I thought I was relieved at finding out she wasn't pregnant, but that was nothing compared to this relief. She didn't love him. I'm sure when I had time to think I would be a little hurt that she slept with a man she didn't love, but for the moment I was happy. She didn't love him, and she thought it was a mistake.

She relaxed in my embrace for a minute, and then she tensed slightly before asking me the one question I wasn't prepared for.

"Where were you last night?" She pulled away from me again, and I could see that she was angry. "I tried to call you."

I stared at her for a moment, trying to figure out if I should lie or not. "I was with Pam," I said.

"You slept with her?" she asked.

I wondered if the rumors had already gotten to her, and wondered if I should still go through with it. To this day, I have no clue why I did what I did next, but I will never stop regretting it.

I nodded, and I couldn't take it back.

She immediately removed herself from my arms, and then her face was unreadable. She was hiding from me.

"About time you got yourself a girlfriend, Northman," she said, and my brow furrowed. Everyone else in school called me Northman, but not Sookie. She'd never referred to me that way before.

"She's not my girlfriend, Sookie. It probably won't even happen again," I said as I tucked some stray hair behind her ear. She stepped back into the stall and started grabbing her things.

"So, will you be available to take me home after school today?" she asked. I wanted nothing more than to tell her I'd lied and confess my feelings to her, but I couldn't. I was afraid to even speak for fear of whatever could come out of my mouth.

I nodded again to answer her question.

"Okay then, I'll meet you at your car after school," she said, and then turned around and walked out of the bathroom.

I didn't follow.

* * *

**Sooo... That was my big twist in the expansion. Eric never slept with Pam. So tell me... were you surprised? How does this make you feel? :-) Can't wait to hear!**

**Thank you so much for reading and taking the time to review! It really means a lot and totally helps to know how people are feeling about the story. **


	7. Last Day

**Chapter 7 - Last Day**

When school ended that day, I met Eric at his car and we both acted as though nothing had happened. There was tension there, but as we went about our after school routine it lessened, somewhat. Gran could tell there was something up, but she didn't actually say anything.

That night, before Eric left he gave me a long hug.

"I'm sorry I disappointed you," he said.

"You didn't disappoint me, Eric. You're a guy; you have needs, and I get that. I'm just surprised at the "who" that's all," I said, and as I spoke I saw such hurt in his eyes. I wondered if he regretted it, and came to the conclusion that he must. There was no other explanation I could come up with. He'd said it wasn't going to happen again, and he thought he'd disappointed me, and to me that spelled out regret. That was okay. I would just make sure not to mention it to him.

Apparently, Eric decided to do the same thing when it came to Alcide and me. He simply didn't mention it. During school that day I decided not to break up with Alcide, and I mentally beat myself up for thinking it was ever an option. I cared for him so much, and I knew it could grow to love, and there was no reason anymore not to stay with him. I should have asked myself if having no reason to break up with someone was a reason to stay, but I didn't let myself dwell on that. It may have been selfish of me, but I didn't care. I had a good thing, and I would hold onto it.

After that day I didn't see Eric talking to Pam anymore. In fact, he often looked really pissed when he saw her, and she just had this go-to-hell look on her face most of the time. I kind of wanted to ask him about it, but couldn't ever get up the courage.

Alcide respected my wishes to not have sex for a while, and even held back more when we were making out. He was so sweet about it, but after a couple months and the ache from everything with Eric had dulled, I found myself telling him I was ready again. He kept asking if I was sure, and I was. Alcide loved me, and Eric didn't. Why not enjoy my boyfriend? I just wanted to feel… something.

Alcide was good to me. That second time wasn't much better than the first, but with practice comes skill. Plus, he never left me unsatisfied. I was also quite relieved that he wasn't pushing me into saying I loved him, because I still didn't. Even though I decided to let go of my hope that Eric and I would ever be together, I still couldn't bring myself to love anyone else.

I didn't talk to Eric about being sexually active again, and as far as I knew he wasn't aware. Just before school ended I noticed him talking to Pam in the halls again. They didn't seem as pissed at each other as they had been, and I wondered if they had hot angry sex. Maybe that was the appeal?

The last day of eleventh grade was another life-changer for me. There was going to be a big party that night at Pam's house, and as far as I knew Eric was going. He drove me home from school, and we hung out and had dinner with Gran before he left. Alcide picked me up to take me to a movie to celebrate the last day of school, but I found myself feeling peeved that Eric was probably off having sex with Pam at her party, so I convinced Alcide to take me back to his house instead.

I attacked him as soon as we entered his bedroom, and began pulling off his clothes.

"Slow down, sweetie," he said against my mouth. "What's gotten into you?"

"I want this," I said, and pushed him onto the bed before pulling off my shirt.

He seemed hesitant at first, but as I kissed him again he got into it. I got his clothes off and straddled him before putting the condom on him myself, something I'd found he really liked. We'd never gone down on each other, so I assumed he just liked me touching him.

I got a little brave and decided I wanted to try this position. I was always a bit too shy to do it before, so we'd stuck with missionary. It took me a minute to find a good rhythm, but when I did it was absolutely wonderful. There was a certain amount of power and control I felt, and I loved it. Alcide loved it too if the noises he was making were any indication.

After a few minutes Alcide sat up and attacked my neck and chest with his mouth. I wrapped my legs around him as he pulled me close and moaned when I felt him hit places deep inside me I didn't know existed. At that moment, I don't know what came over me, but as I wrapped my arms around Alcide's broad shoulders, my mind imagined they were Eric's.

All of a sudden the hands pressing on my lower back were Eric's, and the mouth that was sucking and nibbling on my neck was Eric's. I closed my eyes and let my mind take over with the charade, controlling my body as it moved at a more frantic pace until, suddenly, I was crying out in pleasure as the most intense orgasm I'd ever had burned through my body.

I heard a loud groan of satisfaction and it broke me from my imagination. I was with Alcide, not Eric. After his hips stopped moving, and his grip on me loosened somewhat I got up and quickly pulled my clothes back on while he went to dispose of the condom. He looked a little confused when he came back and saw me fully dressed.

"I'm sorry, I just… embarrassed…" I mumbled while my brain was going a mile a minute trying to figure out what had just happened.

Of course, Alcide being the amazing, perfect guy he is had to go and say something wonderful.

"Don't be embarrassed, Sookie. That was amazing and perfect, and I've never seen you more beautiful than you are when you're having an orgasm."

All I could do was smile and let myself be embraced by him.

"Come on, let's lie down for a while," he said as he pulled me down to the bed with him.

Alcide was naked as he spooned up behind me, one arm under me and wrapped across my chest, and the other draped across my stomach, pulling me close. I heard and felt him breathe in the scent of my hair, and after a few minutes his breathing steadied and I knew he was asleep.

After I knew he was far enough under, I carefully removed myself from his grasp and went to the bathroom. Looking at my reflection in the mirror, I found that I was completely disgusted with myself. I may not be an experienced girl, but I knew that it was absolutely wrong to imagine you were with someone other than the person you were actually with. Celebrities are one thing; you'll never actually meet them, and as long as it's not all the time then it's not an issue. But this? This was so different. I was imagining I was with the person I really loved, and I saw him all the time. I also knew after _that_ orgasm that every time after I would always imagine Eric.

I couldn't do that to Alcide. He didn't deserve it. He deserved someone that would truly love him, every last bit of him. I didn't deserve someone as good as him, and I was a horrible person for letting it go on as long as I had.

**Alcide POV**

I should have known something was wrong when I came back from the bathroom to find Sookie completely dressed. She said she was just embarrassed, but there seemed to be something else bothering her. I tried to reassure her as best I could, and then convinced her to take a nap with me. There was nothing like falling asleep with Sookie in my arms.

When I woke up, she wasn't in my arms anymore. She was sitting against the headboard and refused to meet my gaze.

"Sookie?" I asked as I sat up.

"I think we should break up," she said in a calm, controlled, yet somehow still emotional voice.

I was so confused in that moment. Had we not just had the best sex we'd ever experienced?

"I don't understand," I finally said.

She looked at me, and I knew she was completely serious.

"It's all me, Alcide. I know how cliché that is, but it's just true. You are so perfect and amazing. But even after all this time I'm still not in love with you, and I can't lead you on anymore. You deserve better than that," she said as her eyes glistened with unshed tears.

I didn't know what to say. I didn't deserve better. They didn't come any better than Sookie. You can't move on or replace a girl like that. There was more to this though. She knew it and I knew it. I have no doubt that she meant exactly what she said, but the underlying cause for why she couldn't fall in love with me? Eric Northman.

I didn't say anything, because I was afraid of what would come out of my mouth until I'd calmed down a bit. I got dressed because, yes, I'd just been broken up with while I was naked. How very "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" of her.

We silently went down to my truck, and I helped her in like I always did before getting in and driving her home.

Where the hell did it go wrong? I thought maybe that I had pushed sex too fast, but every time we did it I made sure she wanted to, so that couldn't be it. I didn't know why my brain was trying to rationalize it any other way, because I knew the answer. Sookie was in love with Northman. Everyone knew it. It's why people were always surprised when they found out we were dating. I tried to get her to fall for me, I really did. I was myself with her, completely open and honest, a gentleman… but none of that mattered if her heart already belonged to someone.

Not that I blame her at all. In my heart I knew she tried to love me. She wouldn't have stayed with me so long if she weren't trying. I understood how hard it probably was for her to make the decision to end it, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

Sookie Stackhouse had broken my heart, and I had no one to blame but myself. Going into it I suspected that she had feelings for Northman, so I should have backed off, but I didn't. I let myself fall for her when I always knew it would end like this.

So when we pulled up to her house, and she took off the necklace I gave her on Valentine's Day to give it back to me, I told her not to.

"Please keep it. I don't care if you never wear it again, or if you melt it down into something else, but I wanted you to have that for a reason, and I can't take it back," I said, trying desperately to keep the emotion out of my voice. I was a man, and men don't get emotional over breakups.

She paused for a minute, and then nodded before tucking it into her pocket. Her hand went to the door handle, and I knew I couldn't leave it like this. I had to say something.

"I'm sorry, Sookie," I said. I was. I was sorry I couldn't be what she wanted and needed. I was sorry I let her stay with me for so long when I knew she didn't love me.

"I'm sorry too," she said, and then she climbed out of the truck, and went inside.

I thought about driving home, but I really didn't want to go back in my room while the memories were still fresh. Then I remembered Pam's party, and drove there. People were just starting to really show up when I arrived. Immediately, I was asked where Sookie was and had to tell people we broke up. I actually felt pretty numb about it. I made a couple rounds through the party, and then I saw Northman talking to Pam. It looked like they were arguing about something, and I was disgusted. He had a girl like Sookie Stackhouse in love with him, and he could have all of her, yet he was with trash like Pam? I didn't understand it, and it pissed me off.

I left the party and drove home before I kicked his ass. I forced myself to go up to my room and reluctantly crawled into my bed. I could still smell her there, and inhaled deeply.

I knew at that moment that I had to let her go completely. If I went on thinking I still had a chance, I'd never be happy, but if I let her go now, wallowed like a chick and moved on then I just might be okay.

Maybe.

**Sookie POV**

After I went inside, I wasn't sure what to do. Breaking up with Alcide took a huge weight off my shoulders, but at the same time I felt horribly guilty because I knew I'd hurt him. A part of me wanted to run straight to Eric and confess my feelings like a dramatic Lifetime movie. That was the part of me that still believed he might have feelings for me, and that just wasn't the case.

I knew I would go crazy sitting at home all night, so I quickly decided to go to Pam's party. Eric would most likely be there, and perhaps seeing him with Pam was just the kind of punishment I needed right now. Jesus, was I masochistic or what?

I took a hot shower, and dressed in a pair of jeans and a nice top that showed some cleavage. Maybe I could show Eric just what he was missing. With her permission, I borrowed Gran's car and drove to the party. It was going pretty strong when I got there, and I noticed Eric's car by the road, so I was pretty sure I'd see him in there.

Selah and Arlene accosted me as soon as I walked in.

"Oh my god, Sookie! Did you and Alcide break up?" one of them asked.

"Yes, we did, so you don't have to pretend to like me anymore. Not that you ever did in the first place, but whatever," I snidely remarked, really not wanting to deal with them.

They stomped off in a huff to tell someone else the good news, and I started walking around. When I finally spotted Eric, I found him not alone. He was sitting in a recliner, and Pam was sitting across his lap, but she wasn't paying any attention to him. She was laughing and talking to a guy standing in front of her like she wanted to devour him. Eric just looked generally pissed off at the world, and he wasn't paying attention to her at all.

I finally realized how sad it all was. If they were still having sex, it was completely devoid of any emotion. She was probably going to screw the guy she was talking to and was flirting right in front of Eric, but he didn't seem to care at all. I thought briefly about saving him from it, but then I changed my mind. He chose to fuck with Pam, and he could just deal with that. He could have had me, and he could have had love, but then I suppose it would've been like mine and Alcide's relationship.

That thought was enough to get me in search of alcohol. I'd never tried any kind of alcohol before, and I knew it wouldn't take much, but I was done with thinking for the night. I needed to stop. I found the keg in the kitchen and got a beer from the kid filling cups. I knew it would taste bad, so I downed it quickly, and then I downed another. Someone else was pouring shots, and they handed me a couple. I drank them, and after a few minutes, I started feeling tingly.

I finally registered that there was music playing and realized that I hadn't danced in a while. I found my way to the room with the stereo in a haze, and began dancing. Suddenly I was dancing with a guy, and then two. At first, I liked it. It felt good, being wanted like that. Then they started touching my chest and butt, and I didn't like it. I started to get pissed, and was just about to knee one of the guys in the groin when I felt a hand on my arm, pulling me out the door.

My eyes followed the arm attached to the hand, up to a strong shoulder and a beautiful neck, and then a handsome face. It was Eric, and he looked pissed. We were in the front yard when he finally spoke.

"What the hell were you thinking, Sookie? What would Gran say?" he asked as he continued to drag me somewhere.

My head was starting to hurt, and I didn't want him touching me. It was too painful. I yanked my arm from his grasp and stopped walking.

"I broke up with Alcide," I blurted out, and he stopped dead in his tracks.

I don't know if the courage came from the alcohol, or if I was just fed up with hiding it, but when he turned to face me I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled his head down to mine. The second our lips touched I felt a shock go through me. He was stiff for a second, and then he loosened up and began to kiss me back as his hands went to my waist. Our lips moved together in a wonderful rhythm, and just as I began to deepen the kiss, he pulled away.

There it was.

Rejection.

I immediately hunched over and retched on the ground. Eric quickly got behind me and held my hair back with one hand as he rubbed soothing circles on my back with the other. After I finished, he picked me up and carried me to his car where gently put me in the passenger seat, and then drove me home.

He carried me into the house and into the bathroom. I wasn't sure why we were there, and then he got out my toothbrush and put some toothpaste on it before handing it to me.

"Brush," he said, and then left the bathroom for a minute. When he came back in I was done with my teeth, so he led me into my bedroom where I saw what he'd been doing. He made my bed and pulled the covers back for me. There was also a fresh glass of water on the nightstand with a couple of aspirin.

I sat on the bed and let Eric remove my shoes and socks before I laid back. He covered me up with my blanket and tucked it under my arms, just how I liked it. Just as he started to walk away, I put a hand on his arm.

"Please stay," I said.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea," he said quietly.

"Eric, I just broke up with a boy who loves me and broke his heart. Then I had to see you with your slut all over you, and got drunk and felt up by God knows who. And then I puked my guts up after being rejected by you… again. I've had enough crap for one night, and all I want is for my best friend to hold me until I fall asleep. I need to know that some things aren't going to change, even for just a little while."

He didn't say anything else. He simply kicked off his shoes and lay down next to me. I felt myself be pulled into his arms, and I think he said something just before I was completely out, but I wasn't coherent enough to understand what it was before darkness took me.

**Eric POV**

After that morning in the bathroom, I refused to talk to Pam. She tried to talk to me in the halls a couple of times, but I was pissed at her and ignored her. She seemed to take the hint, and began getting pissy with me as well until she cornered me after a class once.

"What the hell, Eric? I know they're still together and it didn't work, but you don't have to treat me like I gave you a disease," she said.

"I'm ignoring you because as it turns out, I did have something to lose. She doesn't even respect me now. Do you have any idea how hard it is to know something like that?"

"Oh, grow a set!" she yelled before walking out.

Maybe she was right. Perhaps I did just need to man up and deal with it. My way of dealing with it was pretending like it never happened, which seemed to be Sookie's approach as well. She didn't mention Pam to me, and I didn't talk about her and Alcide, even when it was obvious they were doing it again.

It didn't take much to figure out. Alcide always had a smile on his face, and the way they looked at each other was just different. That was when I knew I had to talk to someone about it. Obviously, I couldn't talk to Gran about the sex part, because that would just be… awkward. I still confided in her a little when she'd ask how I was doing, but that was it. She refused to involve herself in the situation, saying that we needed to make our own mistakes.

The only person I knew that would understand was Pam, so around the time school was about to end I began talking to her again. Surprisingly, Pam actually had a soft side, and gave me her number so I could call her. I found that I actually trusted Pam. She never told anyone the truth about us, and she didn't make it worse. She didn't gossip about how I felt about Sookie, and after I thought about it I realized that Pam never spread rumors unless they were about her. It was only that reason that I finally told her about Alcide and Sookie having sex. She claimed that she already knew; that it was, in her words, "pretty fucking obvious." She let me talk about Sookie and Alcide, and my fears that she'd get knocked up and I'd never have a chance with her. Pam laughed at that, and said it wasn't likely since they were both smart enough to protect themselves. It didn't stop me from worry about it.

Almost every one of our conversations ended with a fight where Pam would tell me to grow a set, and I would tell her to unfreeze her cold, dead heart. Problem was, I knew she was right. I was a being a pussy about everything, and I needed to do something soon.

Pam was throwing a party on the last day of school, and I decided to go since Sookie was going to a movie with Alcide. I went home for a while first, and by the time I got to the party it was going strong. Pam hunted me down as soon as I got there, and started yapping at me about this guy she wanted to screw who was there and she wanted me to help make him jealous. I had no idea why the hell she was coming to me with this, but I guessed that she'd had a few and knew I didn't want to screw her, so that made me the friend who could do things like this. I felt like I was in one of those teen party movies, and after arguing with her about it for a bit I agreed to go along with it. Hell, it might be amusing to watch Pam in action.

I walked around the party for a while, and every now and then Pam would pop up and make me wrap my arms around her and act like we were talking. It _was_ amusing… for about an hour. Apparently, she was playing hard to get with this guy like a pro, which meant she wouldn't give in until the party was over.

I attempted to sit in a recliner for a while, assuming that if I wasn't standing up Pam would spot me, but she did… and she sat on my lap.

"What the hell, Pam? Can't you just take him up to your room and get it over with?" I asked as she picked my hand up and placed it around her waist.

"No, this is so much more fun," she said.

At that point, I refused to play along anymore, so I didn't even attempt to look anything other than bored as hell. I couldn't even be entertained when the guy came over and Pam flirted with him from my lap. I mean, really, what kind of guy goes for a chick like that? At least everyone knew what they were getting from her.

After Pam got off of me I stood up and made another round through the house, stopping to talk to some football guys a couple times. I was just getting into an actual conversation with a teammate about the next season's teams to beat when Pam came up to me again.

"Pam, I'm done with that for the night," I began, but she yanked on my arm to pull me down so she could say something in my ear.

"You need to go to the living room right now," she said, and there was something in her tone that made me head straight there.

What I saw when I walked into the living room made my blood boil and my heart ache at the same time. Sookie was dancing, and it's a stretch to call it that because it looked much more like grinding while standing up. There were two guys, Bill Compton one of them, on each side of her, and a third looked like he was going to join. Sookie was obviously drunk, and Alcide was nowhere in sight. I wanted to kick his ass for letting Sookie drink, and then leaving her there. Bill, who'd had a crush on Sookie since freshman year, decided to take the golden opportunity to cop a feel. That was about all I could take.

I stood to my tallest height, and made sure the guys surrounding her knew I meant business, which cleared them away just enough for me to grab her by the arm and pull her out the door.

When we got out of the house, I let her know exactly how I was feeling.

"What the hell were you thinking, Sookie? What would Gran say?" I asked her, continuing to pull her along even though I wasn't quite sure where I was taking her. My car? Alcide's truck? Where the hell was he anyway? Sookie yanked her arm away with ease since I wasn't actually gripping her very hard.

"I broke up with Alcide," she said, and I immediately stopped moving.

There were so many thoughts running through my head at that moment. I wanted to know why it happened, when it happened, if he'd hurt her, if she did it for me, if she had feelings for me, if I should tell her how I felt, if I should tell her the truth about Pam… Ultimately, when I turned to speak, the question was going to be "What?" but before anything could come out of my mouth, Sookie reached up and pulled my face to hers.

As soon as our lips touched I felt like someone had got my tongue with one of those little square batteries, except the shock went through my whole body. I was so surprised that Sookie was actually kissing me that it took me a few seconds to respond. I went from being completely pissed off to having the girl I love kiss me… try telling me you could've responded right away. Her lips were so soft as they moved against mine, and I put my hands on her waist to pull her to me. She parted her lips to allow me access to her mouth, but the smell and taste of the alcohol on her breath brought me to my senses and I pulled away.

I was about to say something like, "I want you, but not like this," but again, before any words could come out of my mouth, Sookie bent over and threw up.

I immediately got behind her to hold her hair away from her face, and rubbed her back gently. When it seemed like she'd gotten it all out I took a step away to see if she could walk, but her knees were shaking, so I picked her up and carried her to my car. After I got her in the passenger seat and buckled in I looked around to see if she'd brought Gran's car. I spotted it a little further up the road from my car, and figured I'd come get it in the morning. Pam's house was only about a mile and a half from Sookie's, so I could probably walk back for my car.

I drove Sookie home, and she stayed eerily quiet the whole time. I didn't even think twice about carrying her inside, and at first I was going to put her right in bed, but then I remembered her throwing up and thought she'd want to brush her teeth, so I took her to the bathroom and set her on her down on the toilet while I put some toothpaste on her toothbrush.

"Brush," I said when I handed it to her because she looked really confused. While she took care of that, I went out to the kitchen to get her a glass of water and a couple of aspirin for the morning. I set them on her bed stand and noticed that she hadn't made her bed yet, so I took care of that too. Sookie always slept better if her bed was made.

I went back in the bathroom to see how she was doing, and found her leaning on the sink. Her toothbrush was put away, so I assumed she'd finished. I took her hand and led her to her bedroom. She sat on the bed so I could take off her shoes and socks, and then she lay back on the pillows with a sigh of comfort. I pulled the blanket up around her and tucked it under her arms like she liked, and then I stood to leave, but as I turned around her hand grabbed my forearm.

"Please stay," she said so sweetly that I almost said yes, but I knew I couldn't do that. I had no idea what had happened with her and Alcide, and she was drunk. For all I knew she'd wake up thinking we'd slept together.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea," I whispered gently.

Then she proceeded to drop a mother of a speech for someone who was drunk. I was hurt when she said Alcide loved her, but happy at the same time because she'd broken up with him. I was upset that she had seen Pam with me, and that it had hurt her, but then she said something about me rejecting her, and I had no idea what she was talking about. I'd never rejected her that I could recall. It was the last thing she said that made the decision for me to get into bed with her. After everything, all she wanted was for her best friend to hold her as she fell asleep. I could do that.

I kicked off my shoes and crawled into bed next to her, but on top of the blankets. Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close, relishing in the feel of her body against mine. We hadn't done this since she'd just started dating Alcide. I'd missed this. I missed _her_.

"I miss you, Sookie," I whispered, but I'm not sure if she heard me before she fell asleep.

I held her for about an hour before I got up to walk back to Pam's house to get Gran's car. It could have waited until the next morning, but I couldn't sleep. My mind was still trying to figure things out. I hadn't made any progress about the situation by the time I got to the car, and seemed to have backtracked progress by the time I got back to the house, so I gave up.

I hung up the spare keys I'd used since I didn't know where Sookie put the ones she'd used, and then crawled back into bed with her. She was still sleeping soundly, and immediately cuddled into my body when I lay down next to her. I wrapped my arms around her again and let the sound of her breathing carry me off to sleep.

* * *

**Sooo... How are we all feeling? Did you like a look into Alcide's head? I'm gonna miss having him around so much *sniff* **

**I'd like to thank FarDareisMai2 for being a fudgeawesome beta. I've sent that woman so much crap over the last couple weeks it's a wonder her head hasn't exploded. *whispers* I think she's Batman...**

**I also want to give a shoutout to my WC girls. They've mostly gotten GoGI teases from me for a while, and they inspired a couple lines in this chapter with their reactions. You all rock, and I love you. **

**The amazing Meads made me a banner for this story! I love it so much! Link is in my profile!**

**Thank you all for so much review love! I'm totally back on board with replying again since I was so fail at it for so long. Love you all!**


	8. The Aftermath

**Chapter 8 - The Aftermath**

Sookie was still asleep when I woke up the next morning, so I got out of bed and used the bathroom. I smelled bacon when I came out, and knew Gran was up. She looked startled to see me enter the kitchen.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. "Did you stay last night?"

"Yes, I did. Sookie and Alcide broke up, and she needed a friend," I explained, hoping to avoid Gran ever finding out that Sookie had gotten drunk. "What can I help with?" I asked, steering clear of the question I knew Gran was dying to ask after that last bit of information.

Luckily, I'd had an epiphany in my sleep. Or, at least I think it was an epiphany, I wasn't sure how those worked. Anyway, I definitely woke with a new outlook on everything. Sookie and I needed to get back to being 'us'. Until then, I couldn't tell her how I felt, and I couldn't tell her the truth about Pam. Regardless of whether or not she loved Alcide, she was still going through a lot because of the break up. She didn't need me laying anything heavy on her. We'd have the whole summer to become friends again, and then I would figure it out. I was nothing if not patient.

Gran moved over and let me take care of the bacon while she started making some pancakes. After a couple of minutes we heard Sookie get up and go into the bathroom, and then we heard the shower turn on.

"Are you going to tell her?" Gran asked, smiling like an overeager gossip.

"No, Gran, I'm not. She's going through a lot right now, and she doesn't need me telling her I love her. I can wait for her to heal first," I said.

She looked disappointed for a brief moment, and then smiled up at me.

"Young man, you are mature and wise beyond your years," she said, and then went back to her pancakes.

By the time Sookie emerged from the shower about fifteen minutes later, Gran and I were setting the table. I looked up as she walked in and offered her a smile. She seemed refreshed from her shower, but there were circles under her eyes.

"Morning Gran, Eric," she said and sat down.

"Good morning, dear," Gran said, and while she had her back turned I switched Sookie's orange juice out with a glass of water. Sookie mouthed a 'thank you' at me, and I nodded in return.

As we began eating I asked Sookie if she'd like to spend the day with me while ignoring Gran's too-bright smile as she looked between the two of us. Sookie agreed quietly with a small smile, and then proceeded to eat very slowly. Gran assumed she was just upset still so she didn't say anything, but she looked concerned.

Sookie went to put her shoes on as I helped Gran clean up the table, and I took the opportunity to tell her that I'd make sure Sookie ate a big lunch. That seemed to ease her mind somewhat.

It was a nice day out, so we went for a walk through the woods next to the house. We used to play in them as children, and still enjoyed a walk through them every once in a while. I think at that point we both needed to feel connected to our roots.

"What happened last night?" Sookie asked, and I actually found myself both relieved and disappointed. On one hand, I wanted her to remember the kiss because I wanted to know why she did it, but on the other hand I didn't want her to have to deal with any of that right now. Not to mention that I didn't want her first memory of us kissing to be like that.

"What do you remember?" I asked.

"I remember breaking up with Alcide and going to Pam's party. I remember seeing you and her together, and then it gets a little fuzzy. Alcohol and dancing… oh my goodness! Did Bill Compton feel me up?"

"Yeah, but only for a second," I said, trying not to laugh at the disgusted look on her face.

"Gross. I also remember puking, and then I was brushing my teeth, and then nothing. Care to fill in the rest?" she asked.

"Well, I didn't see you until you were dancing, and I dragged you out of there when they started touching you. You threw up in the front yard, and then I took you home and got you to brush your teeth before putting you in bed."

She looked a little sad at first for some reason, and then she reached out to take my hand.

"Thank you for taking care of me," she said.

"I'll always take care of you, Sookie," I said, and we were both silent for a brief moment. "Hey, do you want to go see a movie? We can start off our summer with stale popcorn, soda, and bad blockbuster acting."

"That sounds perfect," she said with a smile.

**SPOV**

I woke up the morning after the party with a headache, and gratefully took the pills that were on my nightstand before heading to the bathroom for a shower. Just one look in the mirror told me there would be no getting past Gran what had happened without a shower and some makeup. Even then, it was possible she would be suspicious.

When I emerged and went to the kitchen, I was surprised to find that Eric was still there. When I woke up I'd assumed he had just gone home. It was nice to find that he hadn't. He even switched out that acidic OJ for some water when I sat down, so I knew Gran didn't have a clue about the party, but she wasn't being inquisitive about my appearance, so I was assuming that she at least knew about the breakup.

At breakfast Eric asked if I'd like to spend the day with him, and I honestly couldn't think of a better way to spend my first day of summer. It would feel like old times. I wanted that.

I needed that.

We took a walk in the woods first, and I decided to ask him about what had happened the night before. To be honest, I remembered every detail, but I wanted to see if he would bring up the kiss. He sounded a little disappointed when I said I didn't remember much, but then he didn't bring up the kiss when he filled in the things I claimed to not remember. Eric not saying anything about the kiss - all it told me was that he didn't want anything from me but friendship, and at that point, I would settle for it.

As long as Eric was in my life in some capacity, I didn't care.

~0o0~0o0~0o0~

That summer flew by. Eric and I spent the whole thing together, and as each day passed I felt myself getting back to normal. We went for walks, drives in his car, saw movies, went swimming in the creek, stayed up all night watching TV and eating junk food. It was wonderful.

I didn't see Alcide all summer. He never tried to call me, and I didn't try to call him. I assumed we were making a clean break, which was just what was needed in my mind. Eric didn't ask me once why we broke up, and I was thankful for that because I didn't want to lie to him, and I knew there was no way that I was going to tell him I'd fantasized about him while having sex with Alcide.

The only problem with all the time I was spending with Eric was that it was causing me to hope again. I realized that my feelings for him had never dulled at all. I loved him just as strongly as I ever had, and I still wanted him no matter what happened between him and Pam.

During one of the last weeks of summer I dreamt that Eric and I were eight years old again, and I told him I loved him. He said it right back, and kissed me on the cheek. When I woke up, I realized that regardless of what I thought his answer would be, I needed to tell him how I felt. That dream also gave me an idea for our Halloween costumes, and I got to work on them early so they'd be perfect.

I was extremely nervous when school started back up. Eric and I had the most wonderful summer ever, and I didn't want it to end. I also knew I'd have to see Alcide again, and I was hoping to avoid it even though I knew it was impossible.

The first day back to school was tough. Alcide looked good, but his smile wasn't the same as it had been before me, and that hurt. Also, he avoided me, yet somehow managed to stay polite about it. I never received hateful stares from him or felt like he actually hated me, but I did feel like I'd broken his spirit.

I still went to football practice every day after school, and one day just before Halloween, I got up the courage to talk to Alcide. Luckily, he had to talk to the coach while the other players went off to shower, so I caught him before he went into the locker room.

"Alcide, wait," I said as he tried to walk past me.

He stopped and gave me a polite smile. "Hi, Sookie. How have you been?"

"Fine, but I'm more concerned about you," I said and took his hand. He bristled at my touch at first, but then submitted to it, lacing his fingers through mine in a familiar way.

"I'm okay, not great, but okay," he said, and I nodded. "Are you two together now?" he asked after a pause.

"What?" I asked, surprised. Was he insinuating that Eric and I were together? Again?

"You and Eric. I know you love him Sookie. You wouldn't have left me if you didn't. I always sort of hoped you'd forget about him and give me your heart, but you couldn't do it."

"Alcide, we're not together," I said, and he looked almost angry for a second and dropped my hand.

"Then what was the point?" he asked, and by the look on his face it was a little louder than he'd intended. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Why did we go through everything we did just for you to break up with me because of someone else, and then not be with him?"

"He doesn't feel that way about me, Alcide. And please… please don't make it sound like what we had was meaningless because of my feelings for someone else. I was faithful to you, and I tried so hard to fall in love with you." The tears started as I blurted out things that should have been said long ago. "I cared for you so much, and you are so amazing," he interrupted me there.

"If I'm so amazing then why are we even having this conversation?" he said angrily.

"Because you are! Dammit, Alcide! You are handsome, smart, polite, funny, kind, caring… you are everything I want in a man, if you weren't I wouldn't have stayed with you for so long. The only problem was that I happened to already be in love with someone else," I said and then paused for a couple of seconds. It was the first time I'd even half admitted it out loud. "If I wasn't, then we would still be together now. None of what happened is your fault. I understand if you want to hate me, I swear that I do, but please don't blame yourself."

He stared at me for a few seconds, and then he picked my hand back up and squeezed it.

"Thank you. I think I knew all that, but it's just taking me a while to understand it. I just feel like I did everything wrong," he said.

"You didn't. You did everything right, and if you treat any other girl like you treated me, she'll fall head over heels for you," I said as I wiped the tears off my cheeks with a smile.

He smiled back. "I did meet a girl over the summer," he said.

I was surprised at how genuinely happy I was for him. "You did? Who is she?" I asked teasingly.

"You don't know her, she's from Monroe. I think it's good though. Taking it slow," he said.

"That is good. Oh, I'm so happy for you," I said and threw my arms around his neck. It took him a second to hug me back, but he did. He held me a little tighter than he probably should have, but I felt at that moment that things would be okay between us. My grip loosened around his neck when I felt we'd hugged long enough, and he released my waist from his grasp.

I couldn't help but smile at him as he turned and walked into the locker room. He passed Eric on his way in, and I noticed the slightly panicked and hurt look on Eric's face before he looked at me. Whatever it was that was bothering him, he chose to ignore, because he put a smile on his face and went to the bleachers to grab my bag for me before we headed to his car.

**EPOV**

The summer was so perfect, and everything between Sookie and I felt like it used to feel. By the end of summer I knew I was ready to tell her how I felt, but I decided to wait for Halloween. It simply felt right to do it then.

All my hopes, all my plans, all my freaking fuzzy, happy feelings went up in smoke right before Halloween. It happened after football practice. I was coming out of the locker room and the first thing I saw was a smiling Sookie wrapping her arms around Alcide's neck. He hugged her back and was obviously holding her close, like he did when they were together. Sookie smiled at him as he walked into the locker room, and I didn't miss the smile on his face as he passed me by either.

Fucking hell.

I decided not to say anything about it right away. There was no need. It was possible that they were just becoming friends again. I knew it bothered Sookie that Alcide was avoiding her like he was, so I held onto that hope.

I needed to learn to stop holding onto hope, because the very next day it was crushed… again. I overheard some girls in the hall talking about how great it was that Sookie and Alcide were back together again. I felt sick and extremely pissed. I had waited for us to get back to normal all summer, and as soon I planned on telling her – finally – this crap happens. I just couldn't freaking win.

What made it worse was that Sookie didn't even tell me. I found myself becoming bitter towards everyone, and it pissed me off because I just wasn't a bitter person. Even Sookie could tell because she started to act cautious around me.

The day before Halloween she asked me if I'd gotten the candy yet. No, I hadn't, because I didn't want to spend Halloween with her if she was with Alcide. I remembered very well how all that had gone the first time around.

"I didn't think we were doing that this year. I figured we'd just go to the party Pam's throwing," I said, sort of hating myself deep down.

"It's our tradition, Eric. This might be the last Halloween that we get to do this and you don't want to? I already made our costumes," she said, and it finally hit me. This could possibly be our last Halloween together. She thought that because I hadn't told her my plans yet – plans that could very well be undone because she was with Alcide again.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know you still wanted to go," I said, but I didn't sound very sorry. Even I could tell.

"I'm still going. Go to the party if you want, but I'm not. If you want to spend Halloween with your friend you know where I'll be," she said, ending the conversation with her tone.

Halloween was on a Friday so Sookie and I went to school, but she didn't ask me if I was going to be there that night. It was like she was testing me or something. It just felt wrong not spending our holiday together, but then I would stop myself with thoughts that she was probably with Alcide.

By the time nightfall came around, I got in my car and drove to Pam's house where the party was in full swing. It was a costumed thing, but I didn't wear one. It wouldn't feel right wearing a Halloween costume not made by Sookie.

**SPOV**

The day of Halloween was hard to get through. Eric was acting like a jerk all of a sudden, and I was pretty sure I was going to spend the holiday by myself for the first time in a long time. We went to school and I refused to say anything to him about it all day. He didn't even stay after he dropped me off that afternoon. When it came time to get ready I put my costume on while trying not to cry. I didn't understand why Eric was being the way he was, and all I wanted was to spend one last Halloween with him while we could.

Gran asked why Eric wasn't there to put on his costume and I didn't know what to say, so I just simply told her I didn't know. She hugged me before I took off for the graveyard, hoping that Eric would pull his head out of his ass and show up anyway.

About an hour into my waiting, then sun was finally fully set, and Eric still wasn't there. I began to cry. The sadness just overtook me, and I had to let it all out. I was so caught up in feeling sorry for myself that I didn't hear a twig break behind me, and all of a sudden there was a hand on my arm. It wasn't warm and slightly rough like Eric's, it was cold and clammy. I jumped up and turned around to find Bill Compton, dressed as a vampire.

He dressed as a vampire every year. This year he'd added sparkles and messy hair to the red satin lined Dracula cape.

"What do you want, Bill?" I asked as I wiped my tears away. Bill lived on the other side of the graveyard, but he didn't normally bother me.

"I was just passing through the graveyard and heard you crying. I thought I could… comfort you," he said as he took a step closer.

"I'm in no mood for your creepiness or your company, Bill. Please just go away," I said as nicely as I possibly could.

"I can't just hang out with you?" he asked.

"No, you can't, because I don't want you to," I said.

"Come on, I know we're not friends, but I like you," he said as he moved closer than I liked, so I did what my brother taught me to do a long time ago. I gripped his shoulders, and kneed him in the kiddie-makers as hard as I possibly could.

Overreaction? Maybe. Satisfying? Most definitely.

It worked too. He clutched his crotch, called me a foul name, and ran away while I sat back down and continued my shitty night. Alone.

* * *

**I know that's kind of a crappy ending, but those of you who know the one-shot know that good things are just around the corner :-)**

**I'm happy to say that I am finished writing this story. It will be 12 chapters and an epilogue, and they're all complete and with my beta so you'll get them as I do. Heck, maybe I can sweet-talk my beta into a once a week update on this. That said, I love you FDM! **

**Also, I have an idea for a sequel for this story and I need to iron out a plot first, but I think I'll be writing one! Currently I'm working on What Dreams May Come. I only have two more chapter of that to write and it's done! **

**Pimpage time! Have you voted in the Naughty or Nice contest yet? My entry, The Ribbon, is one of the finalists! Please go read all the finalists and vote for your favorite! **

**[remove spaces]**

**http://www . fanfiction . net/u/2163083/Naughty_or_Nice_List**

**All that said, I can't wait to hear everyone's thoughts!**


	9. A Viking and a Fairy

**Chapter 9 - A Viking and a Fairy**

I was sitting on the couch at Pam's party, being a cynical ass in my head while watching my fellow idiotic classmates act like horny, drunken buffoons when the hostess herself came up to me.

"Eric, what the fuck are you doing here?" Pam yelled in that annoying bitch voice of hers, and when I looked up at her I almost busted out laughing. Pam, pessimistic, bitchy, conceited, man-eater Pam, was dressed as Little Bo Peep complete with a shepherd's crook.

"I'm enjoying your Halloween party," I replied with a smirk. "Trying to lure the bed wetters into your dungeon there, Pam?"

"Why aren't you with Sookie?" she asked as she crossed her arms over her chest, ignoring my jab at her costume.

"Because I don't want to spend our holiday with her if she's with someone else, okay?" I confessed while sinking back into my sour mood.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I saw her hug Alcide the other day, and then I heard they were back together. You know, I was actually going to use this Halloween to finally tell her how I feel? _Finally_. Just like the first time, fucking Alcide comes in and my chance slips right through my fingers," I ranted, venting my bitterness.

"You're a fucknut, you know that? She's not with Alcide. He's dating some girl from Monroe. What you saw was probably them getting _closure_."

"What?" I asked, dumbfounded.

"Some other dumbass probably saw them hug too and spread the rumor. Jesus, Eric, you know how shit like that flies through high schools."

"So they're not together?"

"No! And now she's spending her Halloween alone. Actually, she wasn't alone…" she trailed off, and started to walk away.

"What do you mean she wasn't alone?" I asked loudly while jumping up off the couch. "Stop playing mind games with me, Pam!"

"Bill Compton just showed up and asked for ice to put on his balls. Apparently, he tried to comfort a crying girl in a graveyard and she kicked him in the nuts. I have to say, I didn't think she had it in her."

"Comfort how?" I asked, clenching my fists. Bill was a skeevy little prick, and I would have loved nothing more than to give him a black eye.

"Does it matter? He probably can't have kids now. The point is that the girl you love is now alone in the graveyard, crying and waiting for you to show up and sweep her off her feet. Golden opportunity, Eric. Don't fuck it up," she added with a wink, and then walked away.

She was right - I was a dumbass. Sookie had been looking forward to spending this Halloween with me, and even said she was excited about our costumes. My idiocy had hurt her needlessly.

I ran to my car and drove to Sookie's house as quickly as I could. Gran took one look at me when I ran in the house and her eyes lit up.

"Well it's about time," she said, and smiled.

I laughed and went to Sookie's room to get my costume. I was a little anxious to see what it was since she had refused to tell me or let me see it. The garment bag was hanging on the door of her closet, and a slow grin spread across my face after I lowered the zipper on it.

A Viking.

I understood immediately, and I was never surer than at that moment that Sookie had feelings for me too.

I quickly got dressed in the outfit and ran out of the house, stopping only to give Gran a kiss on the cheek. I grabbed the two candy bars I had bought the previous week from my car and stuck them under a strap on one of the boots.

As I walked towards our spot I heard sniffling and realized that she was crying because of me. I stopped for a moment and panicked. Would she be pissed at me for showing up after making her spend most of the night alone? Then I remembered what I was there to do, and sucked it up. I wasn't waiting any longer. I got closer, and as I came to the clearing I finally saw her. She had her back to me, and the first thing I saw was a beautiful set of blue wings.

She was a fairy, and she was beautiful.

I cleared my throat and she turned around quickly. Her eyes were puffy and glistening with tears, but they immediately softened at the sight of me.

"So," I began, "A Viking, huh?"

She smiled and gestured to her costume, "And a fairy."

"A grownup version of Tinkerbell and Thor," I said, taking another step towards her.

"That was the idea," she said.

I took a deep breath and decided to let it all out. "I'm sorry I went to that party tonight. I heard that you and Alcide got back together, and I didn't think you'd want to do this, and then you said you did, but I didn't want to spend it with you if you were someone else's…"

"What are you trying to say?" She interrupted.

I knew I'd have to show her. I couldn't just explain it all. My resolve firmly set, I took two more steps, closing the space between us, and wrapped my arms around her waist. As I pulled her roughly against me, my lips covered hers. She reacted instantly, and we were kissing like I'd always imagined we would be. I wanted more, so I deepened the kiss, and as soon as my tongue entered her mouth I felt a shock run through me. Her arms wrapped around my neck and her fingers went into my hair. She pressed her body to mine, causing me to groan and pull back. I kept my forehead pressed against hers, and tried to steady my breathing so I could say what needed so desperately to be said.

"I love you, Sookie. I've loved you for a long, long time, and I can only hope that you feel the same," I said quietly, but firmly, and as soon as the words were out of my mouth I felt a million times lighter.

"I love you too," she whispered, and if I wasn't a manly sort of guy, I may have let out a cry of joy and jumped in the air.

"Why the hell didn't you say anything?" I asked, smiling.

"Because I didn't think you loved me too," she said.

"Well I do," I laughed, "and I'm not keeping that shit to myself again."

She took my hand and led me to the blanket under the tree, and we laid down together. I wrapped my arms around her and ran my fingers through her hair as we looked at the stars. I don't think I'd ever felt more content in my life.

"There's something missing," she said as she sat up.

"What?" I asked.

"We don't have any candy. It is Halloween after all."

I smiled as I remembered the candy bars, and reached down to retrieve them. Holding them out to her, I said, "You have a choice: trick, or treat?"

"Easy," she replied. "Treat."

I leaned in quickly and kissed her, taking the treat I wanted. I felt so lucky to finally be able to do it, and even luckier that she wanted me to.

"Not the kind of treat I was talking about, but that'll do," she smiled.

"Oh, you meant the chocolate?" I teased and handed her the candy bar.

She stretched up and I felt her tongue lick my earlobe before she whispered, "You're a treat too, just one I'd prefer to enjoy later."

"And you will," I whispered back. I needed to confess to her that I was still a virgin before we even thought about going that far, but I could definitely go for some making out.

Sookie tore off the wrapper of her candy bar and took a big bite. I smiled. She loved to pig out on candy at Halloween.

"It's official," she said. "This is the best Halloween ever."

Right after she said it I heard some kids coming into the graveyard.

"Not quite," I said with a mischievous grin.

"I'm on it," she said and jumped up to take her position. I took mine as well, and together we flitted in between headstones and trees, making sounds and scaring the crap out of the kids until they got too afraid and took off.

As soon as they were gone I had Sookie back in my arms, and I was making out with her the way I'd always wanted to. Yes, I would have to say that this was the best Halloween ever.

* * *

**I know it was kind of short, but they're finally together! YAY! There are just 3 more chapters and an epilogue left to this story and it's over. I'm not sure when I'm going to work on the sequel yet since I'm trying to finish _Never Say Never _and also get started on a new story idea I have. **

**_What Dreams May Come_ is also completely written, so don't yell at me for having a new idea, lol. **

**My amazing beta, FDM, is kinda backlogged right now so I can't promise a weekly update for anything. Everyone's just going to have to be patient. *hugs***

**Lastly, I am very proud to announce that _The Ribbon_ was chosen as Host's Pick in the Naughty or Nice contest! I want to thank everyone that voted in the contest. If you still haven't read or reviewed the entries, it's never to late. **

**Okay, so... is everyone happy that they're finally together? **


	10. Confessions

**Chapter 10 - Confessions**

We stayed in the graveyard until the sky started to lighten a bit, and we finally realized that we needed to head back. Eric and I had made out and talked through the night, and it was probably the happiest, most perfect night of my life.

When we got back to the house Eric stopped me from going inside.

"What?" I asked.

"Let's sit out here and watch the sun come up," he said, and led me to the porch swing.

We sat down and he put his arm around me and pulled me close. I reached my hand over to grab his free one and lay my head on his shoulder. That's how we fell asleep, and that's how we woke up.

Apparently, when Gran woke up she couldn't find us in the house so she went outside to start looking and discovered us sleeping on the swing. She said it was the most adorable thing in the world so she got a camera and took a picture of us, which woke us up.

Gran insisted we stay awake and made breakfast, while Eric and I took turns showering and getting dressed. We all ate together, and then Gran put us to work in the yard since it was a warm day. I raked leaves while Eric cleaned the gutters, and then he mowed the lawn while I pulled weeds. By the time we finished it was time for lunch and Gran fixed us some sandwiches and lemonade.

I was getting a little annoyed because I wanted so desperately to just spend time with Eric, and even though we were, in fact, spending time together, it wasn't how I wanted to be spending it. What I wanted was to make out with him all day... maybe even more than that.

I almost felt like a hussy thinking about that and wanting to do it so soon, but I felt this strange need to claim him as mine, as well as a need to be claimed by him. I felt like it would be so amazing with him, and that he'd be the only other person I would ever do it with for the rest of my life. All I wanted was to experience it.

Gran found more cleaning for us to help her with after lunch, and I was beginning to wonder when she turned into such a cock blocker. By supper time I didn't think there was possibly anything else we could clean, and gratefully sat down to eat. Gran invited us to watch a movie with her after we cleaned up, and we were both too chicken shit to say no, so we did.

By the time the movie was over Eric and I were falling asleep from exhaustion, but we both thought we shouldn't risk him staying over with Gran there. We weren't sure if she'd be okay with him staying in my room since we were "together" now, and thought it best for him to go on home.

I walked him out to his car and kissed him hard before he left with a promise to be at church the next morning.

"Are you happy?" Gran asked me when I went back inside.

"More than ever before," I said honestly.

"Good. Come sit down, I want to talk," she said while patting the spot on the couch next to her.

"What is it?" I asked as I sat down.

"Sookie, I trust you, and I trust Eric. I'm so happy and relieved that the two of you are finally together."

"Thanks Gran, but what are you getting at?"

"Would you like to go on the pill, sweetie?" she asked bluntly, and I could feel my face burn bright red.

"Gran!"

"Don't play coy. I may be old, but I'm not dumb, and those advice columns are quite helpful. I know you did it already with Mr. Herveaux, and I'm disappointed that you gave your virtue to someone you didn't love."

As soon as I got over the shock of what she was saying, my eyes welled up. If there was one thing I never wanted to do, it was to disappoint Gran in any way.

"I know, and I'm disappointed in myself. He did love me though… if that counts for anything. I thought I could come to love him, but it just didn't happen."

She reached out and took my hand in hers.

"You know that, and that's exactly why I'm not upset with you," she reassured me. "Now, despite my age, I am no prude, and I know what you teenagers are capable of these days. I know you and Eric will probably want to get to know each other more intimately, and I want you to be safe. So please sweetheart, if you think you and Eric will be doing that sort of thing then tell me so we can get you some more protection."

I thought about it for a minute. I knew I was all for having sex with Eric as soon as possible, and I was sure he wouldn't be averse to it.

"I think it would be a wise thing to do," I finally said, and she smiled. "Thank you for understanding Gran."

She promised to make me an appointment with the gynecologist first thing Monday morning, and said we'd get me on the pill right away, but then she lectured me about still using other forms of protection, and being absolutely positive we wanted to take that step before we did it. It was incredibly embarrassing, but I was glad she was okay with talking to me about it.

By the time I got to bed I was exhausted, and barely had time to think about how Eric would react to the news before falling asleep.

Gran woke me bright and early the next morning and I got ready for church, anxious to see Eric again. He was waiting for us when we got there, and as usual, helped Gran up the church steps and escorted her to the pew. When the service started Eric reached over and took my hand in his. I smiled as I threaded our fingers together, and we held hands through the whole service. As soon it was over, and after we said goodbye to Gran, I dragged him out of the church so we could do what I was becoming desperate for.

"Where do you want to go for lunch?" he asked when we got in the car.

"Let's just go back to the house," I said.

"Why? We always go out," he said, but I silenced him with my hand on his knee.

"I'd really like to just go back to the house, okay?"

I saw him swallow and grinned. I couldn't wait to get back and spend some alone time with him. The drive seemed to take forever, but we both hopped out of the car and ran to my room when we got there.

I pulled Eric down on the bed so that he was on top of me and kissed him. He kissed me back hard as his hands roamed over my body. I moaned into his mouth when he palmed one of my breasts over my shirt, and arched my back. Eventually, his hands found their way under my shirt and tried to unhook my bra. He fumbled with the clasp, so I sat up a bit to undo it and pull the bra off. After tossing it on the floor, I resumed my place under him and his hand was under my shirt again. A very sexy groan came from deep in his chest when he finally touched my bare breasts, and I made a very pleasurable noise in response.

I shifted my hips a little and brought my leg up around his waist. He stiffened a little at first, but got right back into it. His lips went down to my neck and he began kissing, sucking, and nipping at the sensitive flesh causing me to moan and hitch my other leg around his waist. He stilled again, and I wondered what his problem was.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"I'm fine," he said, but it wasn't very convincing.

Before I could question him further he covered my mouth with his again. He wrapped his arms around me and in one swift move he was on his back with me straddling him. I laughed in excitement, and he smiled warmly at me. His hands tucked my hair behind my ears and then lingered by my face before slowly bringing me down to kiss him. My hands were on his chest and as the kiss deepened, I slid them down to his belt buckle. As soon as I started to undo it he broke away and stilled my hands with his.

"It's okay. I want this," I told him.

"You have no idea how happy that makes me, but we just can't yet," he said.

"Really, it's okay. Not to be a mood killer or anything, but Gran had a talk with me after you left last night. She knows that we'll be having sex, and she's going to get me on the pill."

"She is?" He asked, looking surprised.

"Yeah, it shocked me too, but she said she's relieved that we're together, and that she's not a prude so she knows what we'll be doing. She'd just rather us be safe."

"Sookie… I really am glad you want to take this step with me, and so soon, but I think we should wait a while."

"Why wait? We love each other, and we have for a long time. We're finally together, and… I've dreamed of this," I said, not believing that I was negotiating having sex with a teenager.

He still looked unsure.

"Are you worried about disease? I'm clean, I swear. He was a virgin too, and we always used protection," I said uncomfortably, especially when I saw him flinch. "We should be more worried about you in that respect. Pam's not exactly the most chaste girl," I tried to joke, but was surprised when Eric gently pushed me off of him and got off the bed.

"Eric?" I questioned. "You don't really have something, do you? Is that why you're acting like this?"

He stopped pacing and knelt in front of me, taking my hands in his.

"I haven't been completely honest with you," he began and my heart sunk. Had Pam not been the only one?

"What do you mean?"

"I don't have a disease," he started, and then paused to take a deep breath, "because I haven't been in a situation to get one."

I was confused, and didn't understand what he was getting at.

"Sookie… I didn't have sex with Pam," he said.

My jaw dropped, but I couldn't seem to find the air to say anything.

"Honestly, I was going to after I found out about you and Alcide, and that was why I followed her that day. I couldn't go through with it. Nothing happened. I wanted you to be my first, and I was positive that it could still happen."

My eyes welled up and my heart ached. Eric hadn't slept with Pam… While that made me happy in one respect, I also wondered why he'd lied to me about it. He seemed to have read my thoughts and answered my question.

"Pam said she could help me get you and started a rumor that we'd been together. She said that the only way to get you was to make you jealous, but obviously it didn't work."

"Why on earth would Pam want to help you get me? And why would you let her?"

"She's not as bad as you think. Yes, she had a thing for me, and that's why it was so easy to get her to agree to have sex with me, but when I couldn't go through with it she guessed why. She said it was nice to know a guy who'd turn down no-strings-attached sex because he was in love with someone else, so she said she'd help me get you. She said she hoped that someone would help the man who fell for her in that way, and she wanted to see you and I happy. I know it sounds nuts, but I believed her. I didn't actually want to go with her plan, but she swore it would work. As you well know, it backfired, but I couldn't just take the lie back so I lived with it."

"Jesus, Eric. I was going to break up with him before you said you slept with her," I said as the tears finally spilled and ran down my cheeks.

His hands came up to my face and his thumbs brushed my tears away.

"I was going to tell you how I felt the day he asked you out," he confessed.

"Really? I knew you wanted to talk to me, but I had no idea…" I trailed off as I cried more.

"I should have kissed you last Halloween. If I had just done it…"

"No," I cut him off. "No, I think it would have happened if it weren't for the kids interrupting us."

"If it had, would you have still let Alcide take you home?"

"No. I know I wouldn't have, but we have to stop thinking like this. Everything happens for a reason, remember?"

He nodded.

"That includes all this. All that matters is that we're together _now_. We know how we feel _now_. It's not like we discovered all this when we're forty or something," I smiled.

He smiled warmly back at me, and then his expression turned serious.

"Why did you break up with him? You never told me, and it happened so quickly."

"I broke up with him because I fantasized about you," I said, not wanting to lie about it.

"What?"

"It felt wrong… after that first time," I began, and from the look on his face I knew that he understood what I was talking about. "At the time I was kind of in denial and it didn't seem wrong, but it was. When I decided to stay with Alcide I asked him if he was okay with waiting to do it again, because I knew I had to try to get over you before sleeping with him again. My heartbreak over thinking you had been with Pam dulled a bit with time, and I thought I could do it, so we did. It didn't really dull though, I had just become used to it. The night of that party was the last time because I found myself thinking about you. I imagined he was you, and it was the best time I'd ever had with him. It was all so very wrong, and I knew then that I couldn't continue to be with him, so I broke it off."

He kept his serious expression through my whole confession, and looked a little pained. I knew it must have hurt him to hear me talk about having sex with Alcide. Slowly, his lips curved into a grin that could only be described as cocky.

"You fantasized about me? And it was the best?"

I frowned. "Yes, yes, and it was wrong, Eric."

"Why was it wrong? I don't think it's wrong."

"Okay, imagine that you and I are sexually active, and we end up having the best sex we've ever had… then afterward you find out that I was imagining I was with Alcide instead of you. How can that possibly not be wrong?"

His head hung a little. "Alright, I get it. I can't help but feel a little happy about it though."

I reached out and ran my fingers through his hair, causing him to look at me. "I understand. If you were to tell me that you fantasized about me I would probably be pretty pleased as well."

He smiled, and I instantly felt better. His smile always did that to me. He got up off the floor and sat next to me on the bed, taking my hand in his as he did.

"Do you still want to wait?" I asked gently.

"Yes," he said. "And it's not because of your history or because I'm still a virgin. It's because I want it to be special, not a quick thing that we do while Gran's out. This is also a stressful time in our lives. We've got school to think about, college applications, scholarship applications… what happens after we graduate…" he trailed off and I felt a sinking sensation in my stomach. He was right, we had a lot to think about and a lot of stressful things that would be happening, and the last thing we needed was to be stressed about sex and all that comes with it.

His words finally sunk in… _what happens after we graduate_. It wasn't a question.

"What do you mean by that? What do you think is going to happen after we graduate?" I asked as I gripped his hand tighter.

"I don't know. I really don't. It's something we need to discuss."

"Then let's discuss it right now, because it sounds like we're giving up before anything has even started," I said quickly, unable to hide the emotion in my voice.

He turned to me and took my face in his hands. "We're not giving up. I'll never give up on you. We just need to figure out how things are going to happen now before it sneaks up on us."

"What do you want to see happen?" I asked, taking his hands from my face, and holding them in my lap.

"We both have the grades to get in anywhere, and I've got the extra padding of a possible football scholarship. I want to go wherever you go. We could get an apartment together and not have to deal with living in the dorms."

"Exactly how much have you thought about this?" I asked.

He smiled timidly. "Let's just say that when it was my original plan we would have been staying in separate rooms in the hypothetical apartment because we were just friends, although in that plan I was going to tell you how I felt and get us in one room eventually."

I smiled at him as my wheels began turning. Could we really do that? Would he really follow me?

"I could pay for the apartment," he continued. "My aunt and uncle started a college fund for me when they got me, but I think they believe college is much more expensive than it really is. If I get a scholarship then I'll have enough there to buy a house, and that's not including the money I'll get from my parents' insurance policy when I turn twenty-one."

I smiled. "You shouldn't have to pay for our apartment, Eric. I'll get a job and help pay for things."

"_Our_ apartment?" he asked with a huge grin. "You really want to do this?"

"Yes. I want to be with you, but I only want you to follow me if you can study what you want at the college I go to, okay? Please don't make any sacrifices like that on my behalf."

"That's something we can consider later because I still don't know what I want to do," he said and hugged me close.

"Me either. I guess we should both figure that out soon, shouldn't we?"

He chuckled and pulled back with another serious expression.

"Oh goodness, what now? Enough with the serious face! What else could we possibly need to discuss?"

"It's not that bad, I promise," he laughed.

My expression didn't change.

"Alright… I want to wait until we go to college to have sex."

"What?" I asked, not believing what I was hearing.

"Don't get me wrong… I want to have sex with you very much. I fantasize about it all the time. But, like I said before, I want it to be special. It won't be that way at my house because it doesn't feel like home. It won't be that way here while we're worrying about Gran coming back, and to be honest it just wouldn't feel right doing it here. It won't be special in my car, or in a hotel after prom… but it will be special at our own place, in our bedroom, on our bed."

I had tears threatening to spill… again.

"I don't deserve you," I whispered and hung my head.

"Why would you say that?" he asked as his hand lifted my chin.

"You should be angry, furious even. I didn't have enough strength to believe that you could love me, and I had sex with someone else. You wanted to be my first, and now I can't ever give you that. Yet you still sit here and tell me that you want to follow me to college and live with me. You want us to make love for the first time in a place that's our own."

"Sookie, stop. I'm going to tell you the absolute truth right now, okay?"

I slowly nodded as his eyes stared into mine, and I'll admit I was afraid of whatever he was going to say.

"When I first found out I _was_ angry. I was very, very angry. I was angry, and hurt, and I wanted to give up, but then I realized something. I never gave you any reason not to do that with him. I had nobody to blame but myself. Hell, I even encouraged you to be with him when I could have been sabotaging the whole thing. It took me a while, but I finally understood that while Alcide may have been your first, I will be the first that you love, and hopefully I'll be the last as well."

I took a deep breath, and started crying again.

"Are you serious?" I asked in-between sobs, and he knew exactly what I was talking about.

"It may seem crazy to say considering how old we are… I mean, who finds their soul mate when they're eight? You're it for me Sookie. You are all I will ever want or need. I'm gonna marry you someday."

I couldn't respond, and kept sobbing while smiling like a lunatic. Eric got up for a minute and came back with tissues, which I gratefully took and used. He rubbed my back, soothing me until I calmed down enough to talk.

"You want to marry me?" I blurted out, and then laughed.

"Yes," he replied, not missing a beat. "I'm not saying that I'm going to buy you a ring or anything right now, but one day I will ask you to marry me."

"I don't think I would be averse to that," I said as I took his hand in mine.

He leaned forward and kissed me softly for a few long seconds, and then he pulled away slightly. His forehead rested against mine as he whispered, "I love you, Sookie."

"I love you too," I whispered back.

* * *

**Dawww... aren't they cute?!**

**I want to thank everyone for their patience and for not all jumping me for the last chapter being so short. I certainly hope this one made up for it. I apologize for not getting back to all the reviews for the last chapter. I've been very busy with work and this time of year is very hard for me personally, but I hope to get with it again. **

**Huge sincere thank you's to my beta FarDareisMai2. Poor woman has sick kids and a sick self and she still found time to beta for me, and I appreciate it so, so much. *hugs***

**To all of you who actually liked Alcide and Sookie, I got bit by a writing bug the other day and wrote a Sookie/Alcide one-shot! It is not related to GoGI, and stands on it's own. It'll probably be up tomorrow, so keep an eye out for it!**

**P.S. I have Chapter 11 ready to go too, so yeah... please let me know what you thought of this one :)**


	11. Prom

**Chapter 11 - Prom**

7 months later…

It was finally time for prom. Sookie was excited about it since she didn't go to the junior prom the year before. She'd told me that Alcide wanted to go, and even asked her when they started dating, but by the time it came around they decided they didn't want to because everyone said it was boring. I hadn't gone because it wasn't worth it if I couldn't go with Sookie.

We were definitely going to senior prom though. I wasn't as excited as Sookie, but I wanted her to be happy so I went all out for it. I got a limo for us to share with Amelia and Tray since Sookie had become close to her. Tray wasn't a bad guy, and we often went to the movies with them. We chipped in and paid for the girls to get their hair and nails done, and got them corsages based on fabric swatches since we weren't allowed to see their dresses. They went with us to rent our tuxes to make sure we didn't pick anything in blue or with ruffles.

Prom night the limo driver picked up Tray and me first, and then we went to Amelia's house to pick her up. I waited in the limo while her parents got pictures of them at every possible angle, and when they finally climbed back in we headed off to Sookie's house. I got out and walked up the porch steps to knock on the door, since I was told not to just walk in like I normally did. Apparently she had this whole entrance thing planned. I admit I was a bit nervous.

Gran opened the door after a few seconds and smiled warmly up at me.

"Is she ready?" I asked.

"She'll be down in a minute," Gran said.

"Down? Her bedroom isn't even upstairs," I said, and got myself a swat on the arm from Gran.

"Oh hush," she said, and stood next to me with her camera as we both eyed the stairs.

Almost as if on cue, Sookie came to stand at the landing. She looked like a princess. Her dress was ice blue, and it actually made her eyes stand out so much more than they normally did. Her hair was down in those sexy Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition beach waves. She walked down the stairs, her eyes locked on mine the whole time. I couldn't stop smiling. When she finally reached the bottom of the stairs I reached out and took her hand and squeezed.

"You look beautiful," I whispered.

"Thanks," she whispered back and smiled up at me. We heard the camera click and both turned towards Gran. "We're supposed to pose!" Sookie said.

"I like the one I just got better, it's more natural. Eric, put her corsage on, and then you two can leave," she said.

I turned back to Sookie and opened the plastic box that held her corsage. I took the flower out, and Gran took the box from me so I could slip it on Sookie's wrist. Gran snapped another picture of us while I did it, and then we went out to the limo.

Sookie and Amelia talked about how their dresses and hair and makeup turned out the whole way to the dance, while Tray and I talked football to tune them out. We realized that we had arrived when the girls started making high-pitched, unintelligible noises.

We all went in and had our pictures taken before being dragged onto the dance floor. Sookie loved to dance, and she taught me all the dances she knew from a very young age. Because of her and Gran I could ballroom dance, swing dance, line dance, two-step, and get down with my bad self, as Sookie so hilariously put it once. She was definitely the better dancer of the two of us, and I enjoyed watching her have so much fun.

After a few dances, I noticed Alcide come in with a pretty brunette and assumed this was his girlfriend. I kept an eye on him some through the night and noticed that he was staring at Sookie a lot. It just made me hold onto her tighter, and I hoped that she didn't know the reason. I hate to admit it, but I was still a bit territorial when it came to Alcide. I knew beyond any doubt that Sookie didn't love him, but the fact remained that he had loved her, and he would always be special to her. Maybe it was a guy thing.

Sookie and I didn't stop dancing until she said she had to go to the bathroom, and when she did, I gratefully sat down with Tray who was waiting on Amelia to get back from the same place. We both sat back and sipped some punch while waiting for our girlfriends like a couple of whipped pansies, and you know what? It didn't bother me one bit.

Sookie POV

I went to the bathroom when I couldn't hold it in any longer. Dancing with Eric was so much fun, and I never wanted the night to end. He also looked amazing in his tux. I met Amelia coming out of the bathroom as I went in, and we talked for a minute about the night's plans. She and Tray had gotten a hotel room for the night, and Eric and I were going to drop them off when they wanted to leave. After that, I didn't know where Eric and I were going because he said it was a surprise.

I went into the bathroom and did my business, and as I was washing my hands another girl exited one of the stalls. It was the girl that had come with Alcide. She was looking at me almost sadly.

"You're Sookie right?" she asked in a kind, yet guarded voice.

"Yes," I said. "I'm sorry. I don't think I know you."

"My name is Maria. I'm Alcide's girlfriend," she said. "Look, I don't want any trouble, and I'm definitely not a dramatic girl by any means. I just need your help."

"My help?" I asked.

"Yes. Alcide is still in love with you, and I know that you don't feel the same way. I saw you with your boyfriend tonight," she said.

"Look, I already had a talk with Alcide after school started back up. He was moving on. I don't know what you expect me to do," I said calmly.

"He's trying, he really is, but he's still so attached to you. He doesn't like to talk about you, and he closes off when the subject of your relationship comes up. I think he's having a hard time letting go."

"I'm truly sorry for all that, but I still don't understand."

"Alcide and I have known each other since we were two. Our parents are long-time family friends. We spent our summers together, and by the time we hit high school I was in love with him, but he lived so far away and I knew it couldn't work. We e-mailed and texted a lot, and when he met you and told me about you my heart broke. He was so happy," she said, and smiled a bit; wistfully. "I'd always believed that if you love something you let it go, so I did, and you know what? It didn't work out for you two, so I knew I had a chance. I invited him down for the summer, and something clicked. We've been taking it really, really slow, and I'm fine with that, but it would be nice if we were taking it slow because he respects women, and not because he's still hung up on one."

Wow.

I really, really liked this girl.

"I'm so sorry, and believe me when I say that I understand. You and my boyfriend would probably have a lot to talk about," I laughed. "But, I really don't know what good I can do."

"You can talk to him. Tell him to pull that beautiful, stubborn head of his out of his ass. He'll listen," she said.

"I'll try," I said and started to walk towards the door, but stopped and turned to Maria once more. "You're a much stronger person that I am. He deserves someone as good as you."

She smiled at me, and went to the sink to wash her hands as I walked out the door.

I made my way back to Eric, and the first thing I did was sit in his lap and kiss him long and hard. His hands wrapped around my waist, and when I pulled back he smiled up at me.

"What was that for?" he asked with a smirk.

"For being you. Thank you for letting me make my mistakes and for being willing to wait for me to realize it. I love you so much for that," I said, and his smirk faded somewhat.

"I don't understand," he said, and before I could explain anything, Alcide walked up to me and asked me for the slow dance that had just started.

Eric's grip tightened on me some, but I pried myself from his arms. He stood up after I did, and looked a little panicked. I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and whispered in his ear, "I love you. It's just a dance."

Eric nodded at me and sat back down as I walked onto the dance floor with Alcide. Instead of him putting his arms around my waist and mine on his neck, we went for one of his on my waist, one of mine on his shoulder, and the others clasping. He also made sure to keep a respectful distance from me.

"We need to talk," I began, but he cut me off.

"Yes, and I'd really like to get this out," he said. He looked adamant about it, so I nodded for him to continue.

"I've been watching you and Eric tonight, and I know how creepy that sounds, but it's a good thing. I see the way you look at him. It's the same way I look at you, and it's the way my girlfriend looks at me. It's also how Eric looks back at you, and when that happens your eyes light up. I want to see Maria's eyes do that. I realized that tonight, and it finally hit me that I haven't let go of you, and I need to. I have a good thing with Maria, and she loves me. I owe it to her and to myself to give it everything I have. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm going to move on, and I just needed you to know that."

He took a deep breath when he finished, and then he smiled. It was almost like I could see the weight of the world lift from his shoulders, and then he looked over my shoulder and smiled brightly. I turned my head and saw that he was looking at Maria.

"She's a great girl, Alcide," I said.

"Yes, she is," he said, and I finally saw it. He was looking at her the way he used to look at me, and I couldn't have felt happier.

When the dance ended, Alcide thanked me and escorted me back to Eric before taking off for Maria. I couldn't be certain, but I didn't think she'd be waiting much longer for what she wanted.

"So what was all that about?" Eric asked as he wrapped his arms around me.

"He's in love with Maria," I said, and laughed at the confused look on Eric's face. "I promise I'll tell you everything one day, but for right now I just want you to make my eyes light up."

I knew he didn't understand that fully yet, but he smiled and led me to the dance floor anyway. We danced for another five or six songs, before taking a punch break. Tray and Amelia said they were itching to get going soon, but the sounds of REO Speedwagon filled the gym and I almost started jumping up and down.

"After this song," Eric said to them, and then pulled me onto the dance floor once more.

The song was Can't Fight This Feeling, and even though we'd heard it a thousand times before, we really listened to it over Christmas break and discovered that it fit us perfectly and dubbed it 'our song.' We got excited every time it came on. I was pretty sure that would fade eventually, but for now we embraced it.

I wrapped my arms around his neck tightly as he held me close, and we smiled at each other as we swayed to the song. If I had the ability to sing well, I may have tried serenading him, but I couldn't, so I didn't. Eric, on the other hand, could sing well, and he would sing along to the song when we were alone. It was rather adorable when he did.

Eric kissed me when the song ended, and we didn't stop until a teacher tapped on Eric's shoulder and told us to knock it off. We went back to Amelia and Tray to announce that we were ready to go.

The limo dropped the lovebirds off at the nicest hotel in town, where Tray's car was already parked. He and Eric had done that the night before. We relaxed into each other's arms as soon as we were alone, and I smiled contentedly.

"So, now will you tell me where we're going?" I asked.

"You'll see soon enough," he said with a small smile. "In the meantime, I think you should tell me what happened tonight."

"Maria, Alcide's girlfriend, cornered me in the bathroom," I said, causing Eric to sit up and pull away so he could look at me.

"Did you two fight?"

"No. We talked, and it wasn't bad. Basically, she is to Alcide what you are to me. They've known each other since they were two, and she's been in love with him since they were fifteen. She just wanted me to talk to him because she could see that he still loved me."

"He still loves you?" he asked in a deep, quiet voice.

"Not anymore. That's why I danced with him. I was going to tell him to pull his head out of his ass and take a look at what he had, but I never got the chance."

"Why not?"

"Because he told me that you make my eyes light up in a way he never did, and he wanted to do that to Maria. It was sort of one of those insane, profound moments you never think you'll experience, but it was pretty awesome. I can confidently say that Alcide is completely over me."

Eric looked relieved, but he quickly covered it up with a smirk and pulled me back into his arms.

"Good, because I didn't really want to have words with him," he said and I snorted.

"There wouldn't have been any need. You have me, and you always will," I said, and then I saw a sign on the road and sat up. "Eric, are we going to Shreveport?"

"Maybe," he said, and reached up to pull me back again.

"Will you please tell me where we're going?" I asked, and he smirked more. "You didn't… you didn't get a hotel did you?"

He was silent.

"Eric! Did you get us a hotel?" I asked again sternly.

"Yes," he said, and I took a deep breath to start my rant, but he quickly explained. "But before you freak, just listen. I'm not going back on what I said at all. I still want to wait until we get our own place."

"Then why did you get us a hotel?" I asked calmly.

"Because I wanted to spend the night with you. We haven't been able to at your house since we started dating because of Gran, and I just thought it would really complete the night."

He had such a serious look on his face, that I couldn't help but lean in and place a sweet kiss on his beautiful lips.

"You're not mad?" he asked.

"No. But I wish you would have told me about it," I said. "Does Gran know?"

"Yeah… I had to tell her something. I promised her nothing would happen, but she said that we're almost nineteen and she can't stop us. She's very practical," he mused.

"We really need to tell her about the whole moving in together thing," I said.

"I know. Maybe after graduation?"

"That would be good. I really don't know how she's going to react."

"Well, she always manages to surprise us, and she never had a problem with us sleeping in the same bed. To be honest, that always surprised me, especially after we hit puberty."

"It kind of surprised me too, but I think she really trusts us. That or there's something she's not telling us," I said. The way she just let Eric and I be together always made me wonder if there was something else there that she wasn't saying, but I ended up coming back to the trust thing every time.

"We're here," Eric said, and sat up. I looked out the window and gasped.

"Village Grille? Eric, it's so expensive!" I'd always wanted to go to the restaurant, but it simply cost too much, and I was hardly ever in Shreveport.

"I can afford it," he said simply as the driver opened the door and helped me out. Eric climbed out after me, and offered me his arm. I giggled and slipped mine through his.

"I can't believe we're going in wearing our prom clothes," I whispered when we got to the door.

"It's okay, they won't say anything," he said as he reached over to squeeze my hand.

"You set this all up didn't you? You must have spent a fortune. Don't tell me how much, because I'll feel so guilty," I rambled nervously.

"Just stop worrying and enjoy the night, okay? For me?" he asked. I nodded and he gave me a kiss just before we walked in.

The restaurant was very romantic, and the service was outstanding. Nobody gave us funny looks about our clothes, and we were treated as though we were VIP's. Eric told me to order whatever I wanted off the menu, and as I looked over the dishes I became thankful that prices weren't listed.

The food was delicious, and I was pretty sure the night couldn't get any better. A bill never came, and Eric simply told me that it had been taken care of. I didn't know when he turned into such a debonair ladies' man, but that's what he felt like at that moment, and it kind of turned me on.

We left the restaurant, and the limo took us to the nicest hotel in Shreveport. Eric surprised me by pulling two bags from the trunk of the limo when the driver opened it.

"I had Gran pack you one," he explained with a small smile as he slung them over his shoulder.

Eric checked us in and then we went up to our room. The room was beautiful. It had one huge bed that looked so comfortable, just looking at it made me sleepy. Eric set our bags down and wrapped his arms around me.

"Do you like it?" he asked.

"I love it. You know what makes it even more perfect?" I asked, and he shook his head. "What makes all of this perfect; the limo, the dinner, the hotel… is that you are doing it because you love me, not because you want to get me naked."

He grinned, and leaned down to kiss me.

"I'm not saying I don't want to get you naked ever, just not tonight," he said when he pulled away.

"What should we do?" I asked.

"Well, I paid for two nights so we can sleep in, so we can watch some television, or stay up and talk, or we can go right to sleep, I don't mind."

"I think right now I'm going to ignore that you paid for two nights and go take a shower. They put so much stuff in my hair at the salon and I'm all sticky from dance sweat."

I removed myself from his arms and dug through my bag for some pajamas. Gran had packed me some flannel pants and a t-shirt, so I pulled them out and headed for the bathroom when I realized that it might be a little rude to leave Eric by himself.

"You… I mean… did you want to join me?" I asked shyly.

Eric sat down on the bed and looked at me seriously.

"Sookie, as much as I would love to join you in the shower, if that were to happen there is no way I could stick to the plan to wait. I think I'll wait out here for you," he said.

Boy did he ever have some good self-restraint. I was going to be naked and in the shower less than ten feet from him, and we were alone, and he still didn't want to join me? I found that I wasn't really offended, but relieved. I had grown warm to the idea of waiting until we were on our own, but I will admit that the image of him not being able to wait if we showered together was definitely… hot.

I dropped the clothes in my hand and laughed as I took the few steps to where he was sitting and tackled him, pushing him onto his back, and covering his mouth with my own. He laughed with me and rolled me onto my back as he kissed me.

"What was that for," he asked after a minute or two.

"I don't know. You always manage to surprise me and make me happy, and I thought you deserved a kiss," I said.

"I appreciate that," he said, caressing my cheek with his thumb.

I kissed him once more and then got up off the bed. When I picked up my clothes, I realized that I needed help getting out of the dress. I turned back to Eric and saw that he was watching me intently.

"Can you help me with my dress?" I asked.

He came over and unzipped it just enough for me to be able to reach, and then he moved away again. I thanked him and went into the bathroom. There was no need to push his restraint.

That shower was interesting to say the least. All I could think was that Eric was out in the room all alone, and my mind kept flashing to these scenarios where the curtain would pull back and Eric would join me and wash my hair… among other things. I finished up in a hurry, because I had no idea what I would do if that were to happen.

After I got dressed and brushed my hair and teeth I went back out into the room. Eric was sitting with his back against the headboard, his legs stretched out in front of him, crossed at the ankles. The huge flat screen TV was on some late night talk show, but I couldn't focus on that because of what Eric was wearing. He had on a pair of lounge pants.

That's it.

After I wiped the drool from my mouth and tried to mentally yell at my girly-bits, I joined him on the bed.

"Feel better?" he asked as he pulled me into his arms and planted a kiss on my temple.

"Much better," I said, and wrapped my arms around his very defined torso as I lay my head on his shoulder. "What are you watching?"

"I've been flipping channels. Nothing much on," he said and then turned it off. "We need to talk anyway."

"About what?" I asked curiously.

"I got a letter in the mail today," he said, and I pulled away so we could look at each other.

"What kind of letter?" I asked.

"A college acceptance letter," he said, and a huge grin spread across my face. "Looks like we're both going to the same college."

I immediately attacked his mouth with mine and kissed him deeply. His hands came up and his fingers threaded into my damp hair as he pulled me closer. Soon enough, I was straddling his thighs as we continued to kiss, and eventually we broke apart for air.

"Are you still sure about this?" I asked.

"Yes. They have a great football team, and I can study what I want. Now we need to start looking into apartments before they all get taken."

"I still feel guilty about that. I'll need to find a job so I can help pay for things," I said.

"If you want to find a job, I won't stop you, but you have to understand that I can take care of us," he said gently.

"I know, and I will be able to access the money from my parent's life insurance when I'm twenty so we will be fine."

"You know you don't have to touch that money. If you want to continue holding onto it then it's fine. We probably won't have a huge amount of extras, but we'll be comfortable."

"I know, and we'll have to see where we're at when the time comes," I said and he smiled.

"I love you for doing this with me," he said.

"I love you for wanting to," I replied.

He kissed me again, this time it was slow and sweet, but gradually grew more heated as I pressed closer to him. It didn't take long to feel his hardness pressed against me, and I finally felt brave enough to do something I'd been wanting to. I even went so far as to ask Amelia for pointers, and we ended up having an almost two hour long conversation in which I learned many, many things about this particular act.

I tentatively let my hands drop from his shoulders, and even more hesitantly rested one right on his erection. He immediately pulled back and grabbed my hand.

"Sookie, I swear I didn't get this room for that," he said breathlessly.

"I know," I said. "We're not going to have sex, I just want to please you."

He stared into my eyes for a beat, and just when I thought I couldn't take the suspense, he nodded. I smiled and kissed him on the lips again before moving down to kiss his neck and nip at his collarbone.

"You're going to have to help me," I said quietly.

"You've never done this?" he asked, and I sat up to look him in the eyes.

"No, I've never done this. I don't want to hurt you, and I'm sure you know what you like, so just tell me, okay?"

He smiled and kissed me again.

"Okay," he agreed, and I went back to it.

I scooted down on the bed and hooked my fingers into the waistband of his pants. He lifted his hips slightly and I pulled them down and off of him, my eyes on his the whole time. The lamp in the corner was on, so I knew I'd be able to see all of him in a way I'd never seen anyone, and I was a little nervous about that.

"It's okay," he said, so I slowly let my eyes travel down his body. I took in his broad shoulders, toned pecs, defined abs, and beautiful v-cut, all pointing to the most stunning erection I'd ever seen. It was long and thick, and while I really did want to have sex with him, all my brain could think was, "ouch."

"What's wrong?" Eric asked, and I realized I must have had a strange expression on my face.

"Nothing. Nothing's wrong. It's just… you're…" I rambled, unable to actually say it.

"What?" he asked again.

"Well, you're kind of… huge…" I said, and Eric busted out laughing.

"Am I supposed to think that's bad?" he asked.

I smacked his chest. "I'm sure you wouldn't, but that thing is going to have to fit inside me at some point, and it's going to hurt."

He calmed down a bit at that.

"I promise to take it slow when that happens. I don't want to hurt you," he said tenderly as his hand came up to tuck some hair behind my ear. I nodded, and a smile slowly spread across his face.

"What?" I asked.

"Does this mean that I'm… you know… bigger… than him?"

My jaw dropped. I knew that guys liked to one up each other and loved to know that they were bigger or more skilled, but I never expected Eric to actually ask what he did.

"Eric Ian Northman!"

"What?" he asked with a laugh as he blocked another swat from my hand.

"I'm not answering that, and I don't think I'm in the mood to do this anymore either," I huffed, and crossed my arms over my chest.

"Oh, come on, you can't blame me for being curious," he said and sat up on his knees, his ridiculously large erection pointing right at me. It made me want to laugh, but I was still kind of upset.

He crawled towards me and began kissing my jawline and down my neck, where he nipped at the sensitive skin. I could feel myself getting aroused again, so I pushed him back and straddled him once more.

"If you have to know, then yes, you are bigger than him, but I wouldn't have cared if you were smaller because it doesn't matter to me," I stated.

He snorted, "Right, it's not the size of the boat and all that? I'm a nineteen year old virgin, Sookie. I read, and watch a lot of videos. It's _all_ about the size of the boat."

My eyes narrowed at him, and then I laughed. "Well fortunately for you, you'll be the biggest I'll ever have, so you'll never feel inadequate."

"Exactly," he agreed, and then kissed me again. His kiss reminded me of what I had been planning on doing, and I was suddenly nervous. I reached down again and wrapped my hand around him.

"Show me what you like," I said.

He looked right at me as his hand covered mine on his erection. He squeezed my hand a little tighter, and then stroked upwards. He stopped at the tip, and had me run my thumb on the underside of the head before stroking back down again. Our hands did this for a few strokes, and as Eric's breathing got heavier, I found my own doing the same.

After a couple more strokes, Eric removed his hand and let me take over. I had a little panicked moment when I realized I was on my own, but quickly recovered when I looked at his beautiful face, contorted in pleasure. Gaining confidence, I moved down further on the bed, and kept up the stroking while my other hand went to his balls. He gasped when I gently massaged them, and I took that moment to lean down and put him into my mouth.

"Oh my god," he groaned as I licked all around the head, massaging the underside with my tongue as I had done with my thumb.

I loved the feel of him in my mouth. He was so soft and smooth, and I took more of his length into my mouth. Another groan came from him, and I tried to suppress the urge to smile. I tried to remember some of Amelia's tips and added a twist to my strokes, using my saliva as lubrication.

"A little faster," Eric said and I pumped him faster while my other hand handled his balls just a little rougher. "Perfect…" he moaned.

I felt his hands come up to my head and he pressed gently, urging me to take more of him. I was afraid I'd choke if I took much more, and sure enough another couple of inches had me about gagging so I pulled back a little, but practiced taking more of him in with each dip. Eventually my jaw began to hurt, so I did another trick that I was told about. I wrapped my lips around the tip and sucked hard while my hand tightened and sped up the stroking, and at the same time I lightly scraped his balls with my fingernails.

"Sookie… I'm gonna…" he groaned out, and just as I felt his tip begin to expand I pulled my mouth off of him but kept stroking quickly. As he came he groaned my name, and it was without doubt the sexiest thing I'd ever heard come from anyone's lips.

I stroked him slowly through his orgasm, and finally released him when he finished. I looked wide-eyed at the mess all over his torso and my hand.

"Wow," I said, and then started giggling. "That was very… interesting."

"You were amazing," he said. "Thank you."

I stretched up to give him a kiss, and then hopped off the bed to get a washcloth. I wet it down with warm water, and then returned to the bed to clean him up. He watched me intently as I did, and as soon as he was clean I took the rag to the bathroom again to rinse it out and put it with my towels from my shower. When I returned to the bedroom, Eric had his lounge pants back on.

I climbed back on the bed, and he pulled me into his arms and kissed me hard.

"I love you so much," he said and his kisses trailed down my neck. His large hands went under my shirt and massaged my breasts, making me moan.

"Unless you intend to follow through, you'd better stop because I'm already pretty turned on from what I just did," I told him seriously.

"I fully intend to follow through," he said as his hands moved lower and his fingers dipped into the waistband of my pants.

"Wait," I said, and pushed gently on his shoulders.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm not sure I want you to do that," I said, blushing.

"Why not, you just did for me."

"I don't know. It just seems… more… It's embarrassing," I said.

"How is it embarrassing? You're beautiful, Sook. I want to do this for you. Will you let me?" he asked, and he was so completely serious and sweet that I slowly nodded. He kissed my lips and his fingers went back to my pants. He tugged a little, so I lifted my hips and he pulled them down and off. Immediately, I clamped my thighs together and tried to pull my shirt down. The room suddenly seemed garishly bright, and I didn't want him to see me. Not even Alcide had seen me this way.

Eric did the same thing I had. He looked at me until I gave him permission, only it was taking me much longer to grant it. He crawled up on the bed and lay next to me.

"Sookie, look at me," he whispered, and I did. "What is it?"

"Nobody's ever seen me naked," I said quietly.

"What, did you do it in the pitch dark every time?"

"No, but there was never this much light. Can we turn it off?" I asked.

"No, I want to see you," he said. "Sook, when we both had our hands on me, did that turn you on?"

I blushed an even deeper shade of crimson and nodded.

"That's the feeling I'm going to have when I see you. It's the feeling I already have because I know I'm about to see you. I want to look at you. I want to taste you. Please let me," he said gently.

I looked him in the eyes and nodded my permission. He smiled and kissed me hard before moving down on the bed like I had. I tentatively spread my legs, and he raked his eyes down my body until his eyes rested on the Promised Land. I closed my own eyes because I was afraid of seeing his reaction, and then I felt his fingers gently stroke the length of my folds and I gasped.

"Open your eyes, Sookie," he said huskily, and I did. I looked right into his fiery gaze. "You are beautiful."

"Thank you," I said, and then covered my eyes in embarrassment.

"You're going to have to help me," he said, and I dropped my hand.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I need you to tell me what you like. I've never done this before either," he said.

I took a deep breath and told myself that I could do this. Confidence is what I needed.

"Since I can't get my mouth down there I guess you'll just have to wing it and I'll guide you," I told him and smirked when the fire in his eyes burned brighter.

"Sounds good to me," he said, and then he began.

He started slowly, kissing from my knees and down my thighs. I think I stopped breathing when I felt his warm breath on my center. He suddenly moved to lie on his stomach and bent my legs at the knee, planting my feet on either side of his shoulders. It spread me wide open for him, and I blushed as he looked up at me.

A cocky grin spread across his lips, and then his head dipped down. I gasped at the first touch of his warm tongue on my clit, and rested my head on the pillows behind me. Surprisingly, I didn't have to give him any instruction. Everything he did felt phenomenal. He was a bit hesitant when he brought his hand into the mix, so I let out a breathy, "Please," so that he understood I was okay with it.

Eric has long, talented fingers, and he put them to good use. Before long my hips were moving in time to the thrusting of his fingers, and I felt that slow burn start low in my stomach.

"So close," I muttered, and Eric increased the pressure and rhythm of his tongue while curling his fingers inside me. He instantly hit the spot I'd never been able to find, and I exploded. My eyes clenched shut, and I cried out as I felt myself contract around his fingers. He continued to lick me through my orgasm, and after a few seconds he removed his fingers and lapped at my center until only the tiny aftershocks remained.

It was, without any doubt, the best orgasm I'd ever had, and all I wanted to do was repay him over, and over, and over. In my mind, we couldn't move in together soon enough.

Eric had a triumphant smile on his face as he grabbed my underwear and pajama pants and put them back on me. He lay down next to me and pulled me close.

"That was… you… I mean…" I tried to convey what I was feeling, but I couldn't get the words to come out properly.

"You're welcome," he said with a smile.

"Thank you."

"Did you enjoy yourself?" he asked, his smile turning into a smirk. He was fishing for compliments, and boy did he ever deserve them.

"Obviously. I could barely speak, so you must have done an excellent job. I do want to know where you learned that curling trick though," I added. I was pretty sure a guy isn't supposed to be able to know how to do stuff like that right away.

"Pam," he said simply, and I immediately pulled away from him.

"Excuse me?" I asked.

"No, don't get mad sweetie. We didn't do it, I just confided in her some and she went off on this tangent once about making sure that I please you when we finally get together, and she mentioned that trick so I wanted to try it and it worked," he rambled, trying to calm me down before I got upset.

I wouldn't have been upset if he had done that with her. Yes, it would have hurt, just like it hurt him that I'd been with Alcide. What I would have been mad about was if he'd never told me, and when he said he'd learned from her, that was almost the conclusion I'd jumped to.

I took a deep breath and molded my body to his once more. He wrapped his arms around me and breathed a sigh of relief.

"You're not mad?" he asked.

"No," I said. "I have no reason to be. You don't talk to her about us anymore do you?"

He chuckled. "No, I haven't really talked to Pam since Halloween. I'm not a jerk to her anymore, but we're not friends either."

"I think I should thank her, because that was the best orgasm I've ever had," I told him with a laugh.

"I'm certainly happy you enjoyed it."

He placed a kiss on my temple, and ran his fingers through my hair.

"I'll tell you one thing, Eric," I said. "If tonight was just an appetizer, I know I want the dinner, and I want it soon."

"Me too," he laughed. "I've been meaning to bring that up to you."

"What? Having dinner sooner?" I asked.

"In a roundabout way, yes," he said and sat up so we were looking at each other.

"What's going on in that head of yours?"

"How would you feel about moving a month before school starts? We'd need to start looking now, but it would give us time to get familiar with the area and get used to living together before we throw in all the hectic mess that comes with school."

"So this isn't just about wanting to have sex sooner?" I teased.

"That would be a perk, yes. It's actually what got me thinking about it. If we were to move in a few days before the semester started it would probably be too stressful to throw sex in on top of everything else. Moving earlier would give us a chance to get used to everything so that we're adding school to our lives, not sex."

He picked up my hands and began rubbing circles on the backs of them. I thought about it for a moment. It really wouldn't be so bad, and he made a good point about everything happening at once. He started to rub my hands a bit harder, and I realized he was nervous about my answer.

"Gosh, I'd hate to see what you're like when you ask me to marry you if you're already nervous over this," I quipped with a grin, and then I leaned forward and planted a kiss on his lips.

"I think it's a great idea," I told him.

"Really?" he asked with a huge ass grin.

"Yes, really. But we have to tell Gran soon," I said as he wrapped his arms around me and pushed me back onto the bed.

He kissed my lips, my cheeks, my neck, over and over, still with the big smile on his face.

"I love you so much, Sookie," he said.

I grinned and wrapped my arms around his neck. "I love you too. Now how would you feel about sleep? I'm kind of worn out after what you did, and this bed is really comfortable."

"I feel like I could definitely go to sleep soon. You know, after that amazing thing you did to me."

I giggled and kissed him once more, and then we got up and went to the bathroom to get ready for bed. We brushed our teeth side by side, and had to refrain from laughing at the faces we were both making. I left the bathroom so he could use the toilet, and then did my business when he came out. We may have been in love with each other, and we may have just had our first sexual experience together, but I wasn't ready for _that_ kind of intimacy just yet.

Eric had the light out and was under the covers when I came out, and I slid between the sheets and curled up next to him. He extended his arm so I could lay my head on his shoulder and wrapped it around my shoulders when I did. We both sighed in contentment when we were settled. It was the first time we'd slept in the same bed since the night Alcide and I broke up.

"Eric?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you for everything tonight. It was perfect."

"Anything for you," he whispered. "Goodnight, Sookie."

"'Night, Eric," I whispered back.

* * *

**Alright ladies! One more chapter and an epilogue, and this story will be complete. *sniffles* We always have the sequel to look forward to :-)**

**So, is everyone happy they got _some_ kind of release? You can thank Sunkisz for that. I really wasn't planning on it, but she persisted and said that Eric had to get a release soon. I think it worked out well. **

**Thank you to FDM for beta'ing this long-ass thing, and for calling me out when I got a little too saintly with Eric :) Love you!**

**Lastly, it seems that everyone really liked the Alcide/Sookie one-shot I posted, so I will most definitely be adding to it! Thanks for being so awesome everyone!**


	12. The Apartment

**Chapter 12 - The Apartment**

Two months later…

"Right there… wait, no… a little to the left. Perfect," Sookie directed, ending with a sigh.

"Lady, can't you just pick a spot before we bring it in?" the big sweaty mover asked.

Sookie had directed them over every piece of furniture they'd brought in, and with every piece she made them make adjustments. To me, it was amusing, but the workers were quite annoyed. I understood that Sookie just wanted everything to be perfect. They just had a small table to bring in, and after that was in the right spot we began opening boxes.

"I can't believe we're finally in our apartment," she said for the tenth time, but I hadn't tired of hearing it.

"I know, now we just need to make it livable," I said.

"How about I start with the kitchen boxes, and you work on the living room stuff?" she suggested.

"I'd actually prefer if we did each room together so we can both pick where everything goes," I said.

"That's perfect," she said as she walked over to me and stretched up to give me a kiss.

By the time night rolled around we had the kitchen fully unpacked and about half of the living room done. We decided to order pizza because we still needed to grocery shop, and we figured it would be a good chance to test how long delivery would take. The couch was covered in boxes and movies we'd yet to put up on the shelves, so we pulled out our beanbags and sat on them on the floor to eat.

After we finished eating we were exhausted and decided to go to bed. Sookie had promised to call Gran to let her know how things had gone so while she did that, I got ready for bed. When she finally came into our bedroom I was already under the covers with my hands behind my head.

"Comfy?" she asked with a smile.

"I'll be more comfortable once you're in here with me," I replied.

I couldn't help but smile the whole time Sookie got ready for bed. Sure, we'd been friends for a long time, but I'd never actually seen her do something so… intimate. She'd always gotten dressed in the bathroom, and so had I. This time she stripped and got dressed in front of me like it was nothing. She wasn't even trying to seduce me; she was just being herself in her home.

After she dressed she went into our bathroom to do her business there before returning to the bedroom with her hair up high on her head and a big smile on her face. She turned off the light, and then crawled into bed with me. At first she tried to snuggle up next to me, but I stopped her.

"Turn around," I whispered, and she complied. I spooned up behind her, wrapping my arm around and pulling her close as I buried my face in her hair. I'd discovered my love of spooning on the night of prom. I had woken in the middle of the night and she was on her side facing away so I assumed the position so I could hold her close. I may have woken her up the next morning with a hard on, but I didn't care. She fit my body perfectly like this.

"I can't believe this is our first night in our apartment," she said as her fingers laced through mine in front of her.

"I know. I still can't believe you agreed to this. Gran too."

"I'm not surprised. She let you sleep in my room all those times in high school. She's a very smart woman and I think she just wants us to be happy."

"Are you happy Sookie?" I asked.

"More than I think you'll ever realize," she said as she squeezed my hand. "What about you?"

"Ecstatic," I said.

A short time later we both drifted off to sleep, and when I woke up the next morning I was alone. Sookie's side of the bed wasn't warm so I figured she'd been up for a while. I got up and used the bathroom before brushing my teeth. I tripped over a couple of boxes on my way out of the bedroom but my irritation got better when I smelled bacon.

As I walked up the hall and towards the kitchen I could hear Sookie humming. I stopped in the doorway just to watch her. She was already showered and dressed, and I assumed she had made a trip to the store as well because the only food we had was leftover pizza.

I watched her hum while she cooked our breakfast for a couple of minutes, and it was then and there that I decided I had waited long enough. It was time to make Sookie mine in every way. With my newfound determination I cleared my throat. She jumped and turned around with the spatula still in her hand.

"Oh, hey sweetie! I'm so glad you're awake. I've been up for a couple hours," she said and turned around to continue cooking. "I couldn't sleep any longer. I'm just so excited about getting the place set up. I got a little hungry and Gran would kill us if we didn't eat a proper breakfast, so I ran to that little market around the corner that we saw yesterday and bought some bacon and eggs. I also got some things for lunch…" she continued to ramble on as I walked up to the stove and silently turned the burners off.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

I gently grabbed the spatula from her hand and set it down on the counter.

"Eric?" she questioned, looking into my eyes.

Wordlessly, I took her hand in mine and led her back to the bedroom. I think she understood what I was doing when I took her hand, because she didn't say another word.

I gently shut the door after we entered the room and pulled Sookie close to my body, slanting my mouth over hers and kissing her as sensually as I ever had. She moaned into my mouth and pressed herself against me, as her hands came up to wrap around my neck. We continued kissing as we moved towards the bed together and fell onto it. I wasn't in any hurry and neither was she so we continued kissing, only removing our clothing if it got in the way of our hands.

I finally managed to remove the last bit of fabric from her body and smiled joyfully. This was finally happening. I was going to be with Sookie in a way that I'd been dreaming about for years, and I couldn't have been less nervous. I'd always imagined that I would be a nervous, fumbling wreck when it happened, but that simply wasn't the case. I was more than comfortable with her, and ever since prom night we'd gotten to know each other's bodies well enough that I was confident I could please her.

"I love the way you make me feel." I kissed her lips. "I love the way you smile when you see me." I kissed her neck. "I love these." I kissed her breasts. "I love your soft, warm skin." I kissed her stomach, and then moved lower on the bed, hitching her legs up over my shoulders. "I love the way you taste," I said with a smoldering look up her body, and then began to enjoy my favorite treat.

She let out a low moan as soon as my mouth was on her, and her hands rested on my head, pressing gently. I took my time with her, slowly building her up until she was balancing on the edge of bliss. When she began begging me for her release I stopped and kissed my way back up to her lips.

"I love you," I whispered. Adorable giggles erupted from her as I planted kisses all over her face and neck.

"Come on now, you left me hanging," she whispered after a minute. It was like we were both afraid to speak above a whisper; as though the room was a bubble and any voice louder than a whisper would be like a sharp pin, popping it and destroying the atmosphere we had built up.

I kissed her lips slowly and sensually, trying to convey how much I loved her and would always love her. As we kissed her hand went down between us and grasped me.

"Are you ready?" she asked. I nodded, and then she positioned me at just the right spot. I pushed in just a little and then she removed her hand. "Slow," she whispered.

"Tell me if it hurts," I said, and she nodded.

I braced myself above her as she grasped my upper arms and began to slowly push into her. The things I was feeling were immense: love, lust, relief, confidence, nervousness, and pure unadulterated pleasure. She was so soft and wet and warm. I was proud and possessive that it was all for me, because she was mine. Only mine. Her tight inner muscles seemed to pulse around me, imploring me to go deeper.

She stiffened slightly when I was about halfway in so I stopped and leaned down to kiss her until she began to move her hips, letting me know it was okay to continue. Slowly, I pressed into her more and by the time I was fully sheathed in her we were both panting heavily. I kissed her lips and her neck until I felt I had control over myself enough to continue without exploding.

"Are you okay?" I asked gently. She nodded. "Are you ready?" Another nod. I wasn't sure if she was unable to speak or afraid to.

I started slowly, pulling out just a little before pushing back in. I watched her face intently, mesmerized by the pleasurable expressions she was making. After a few short strokes I was finally pulling all the way out before thrusting into her. She began moaning, which made me confident, and then she began moving her hips to meet mine with every forward thrust, causing me to breathe harder. Then she pulled her knees up and apart and I went deeper.

"Oh my god," I groaned into her neck. "I don't know how much longer I can hold on."

In response to that her hand went down between us and began rubbing her clit. Knowing that she was helping herself along was almost too much for me, but I was determined to make this first time, and every time after, successful for both of us. Her moans and panting got louder, and then she clenched her eyes shut.

"Open your eyes, Sookie," I said. I wanted her to stay with me in the moment, and there was something about looking into her eyes while she was feeling such intense pleasure, pleasure that I was giving her… well, mostly, but this was the first time. I could become more coordinated with practice.

Her eyes snapped open and looked right into mine.

"Eric…" she moaned urgently, and all of a sudden I felt her muscles clench and pulse around me.

"Sookie," I groaned out as I pushed into her as far as I could get and stilled as I exploded, the pleasure from my orgasm spreading like fire through my entire body. "Oh god," I said softly as my hips continued to jerk slightly with aftershocks. I swiftly captured her lips with mine and kissed her deeply.

"I love you so much," I whispered, and then slowly pulled out of her. She winced a little as I did, and I wanted to feel a sense of pride from knowing that I was most definitely bigger than him, but I also hated knowing that I'd hurt her at some point in the process. I kissed her gently before getting up off the bed and going into the bathroom. I cleaned myself off, and then wet down a washcloth. She smiled at me when I brought it back into the bedroom and carefully cleaned her up.

"You didn't have to do that," she said.

"I wanted to. You've done it for me," I replied, tossing the cloth into out dirty laundry pile in the corner before lying back down next to her.

We lay on our sides facing each other and holding hands, neither one of us able to stop smiling.

"How do you feel?" she asked tenderly.

"Relaxed and in love," I replied, and she laughed. "How do you feel?"

"Relaxed and in love," she said with a raised eyebrow.

"Good answer."

"How soon do you want to do it again?" she asked as she moved closer to me.

I smiled because I knew I would be more than willing to do it again soon, but I was also worried about her.

"Definitely soon, but I'm sure you're pretty sore right now so why don't we see if we can salvage breakfast?"

For a second she looked like she wanted to argue, but then she smiled and planted a sweet kiss on my lips.

"That sounds great. You certainly worked up my appetite," she said with a smirk and got off the bed.

I watched as she opened one of my clothes boxes and pulled out my old Bon Temps High football shirt. She pulled it on, and then turned around to look at me. She was biting her lip and smiling.

"I've always wanted to wear nothing but one of your shirts," she said.

"And now you can," I said with a smirk as I stood up and pulled her into my arms. "In fact, I encourage it because you look really, really sexy."

"Oh do I?"

"Oh yes. You, my love, look thoroughly sexed, and seeing you in my shirt makes me want to throw you back onto the bed."

Her eyes darkened slightly with desire. "You better put some pants on before I do just that to you."

I chuckled and grabbed my pajama pants, which were lying at our feet, and pulled them on.

"Come on," I said as I took her hand, "let's go eat some breakfast."

I started walking towards the door, but Sookie pulled on my arm and stayed where she was.

"What is it?" I asked, taking a couple of steps closer. I ran my hands up and down her arms soothingly.

"I just want to say thank you," she said softly. "You were amazing, and you made sure it was amazing for me, and I just… thank you."

I understood just what she meant, and why she was thanking me. I pulled her into a tight hug and whispered in her ear, "You're welcome, Sookie," before releasing her so I could look her in the eyes. "You know, you made it quite perfect for me too. That was so much better than I ever dreamed of."

She blushed and buried her face in my chest, her arms wrapped around my torso.

"Love you," she said.

"Love you too," I said back and kissed her temple. "Let's go have some breakfast."

With that we walked out of _our_ bedroom, her in my old shirt, and me in a pair of flannel pants, and we went to _our_ kitchen in _our_ apartment to finish fixing the breakfast Sookie had started for us. I was no longer a virgin, and for some reason I didn't truly feel any different like some guys said they did. As we sat down to eat I realized why that was. It was just like when you turn a year older on your birthday. You don't feel any different, because you're not any different than you were an hour before.

An hour ago I was a man, in love with a woman, excited about living with her and starting a life together. The same could be said for me at that moment as I was eating breakfast with her after having had sex for the first time. I was still the same; I'd just done a physical activity I hadn't done before. The only change I could think of was that it would severely affect my relationship with my hand, because I was pretty sure he'd have to go into semi-retirement.

"What are you thinking about?" Sookie asked.

"Are you sure you want to know? It was a man thought," I said.

"Then yes, I do really want to know," she giggled.

"I was just thinking that I'm going to have to masturbate a lot less now," I told her, laughing when she snorted into her orange juice.

"You asked."

* * *

***sniffles* Just the epilogue now. If everyone convinces me, then I will post in the morning before I go to work :-)**

**Thank you to FDM, who edited this even though she's on a little vacation at the moment and still getting over a cold. I'll send the NerdStud over later, FDM ;)**


	13. Epilogue

**Graveyard of Good Intentions: The Epilogue**

We pulled up to Gran's house in our brand new Corvette. I thought it was a little much, but Eric had signed a lucrative deal to play professional football and he wanted it, so I conceded because he'd worked really hard. I was almost jealous of the car because he seemed to be in love with it sometimes, calling it "his girl" and "baby" a lot. I would roll my eyes every time.

Eric and I had graduated the week before, and we were spending a couple of days with Gran before moving into our new house, in a new state. We were both rather excited about owning our own home, and I had a bunch of job interviews lined up for teaching positions. Gran was a bit sad that we'd be so far away, and made us promise to come back when we could.

We parked in the driveway next to a big flashy truck and I groaned. Jason. The boy had been absent except for Christmas during most of my teen years, but as soon as he found out that Eric was now in the NFL he decided he wanted some quality time with his sister.

"Whatever you do, do not sign your name on anything he gives you. He'll have it up on Ebay in a couple hours," I said, causing Eric to chuckle.

"I'm the new guy; nobody is going to pay for my autograph. He's also going to have to realize that I'm not going to have the pull to get him tickets either," he said as we got out of the vehicle.

"Eric, you were a first round draft pick… people will want your autograph. Especially Mr. Sell-anything-I-get-my-hands-on in there," I said, gesturing towards the house.

He walked around the car and took my hand, "Come on. Let's go see Gran."

Just as we started walking up the steps Jason came bursting out of the house.

"Holy shit, Northman! She let you get a 'Vette? Can I take it for a spin?"

"I'd rather you not right now, Jason. I'm still a little possessive of it," Eric said calmly.

"Oh come on, man," he started to protest, but Gran appeared behind him and cut him off.

"Jason, you're not driving that car, now let your sister and Eric come inside," she said sternly. Jason had the brains to look sheepish as he turned around and went back inside. Gran smiled warmly at us and opened her arms in an invitation for a hug. We each took turns getting our hugs from her, and then we all went inside where Gran had lunch ready. Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans. Eric and I ate well while at college, but nothing ever matched Gran's home cooking.

"Gran, that was delicious," Eric said and gave her a kiss on the cheek when we'd finished. "I noticed that a couple of your porch steps were sagging a little when we came in. Want me to fix it?"

I smiled broadly at him. Every time we came back to Gran's house Eric fixed something for her. She was too proud to ask, and she didn't have the money to hire anyone. Jason never noticed things like that when he came around, so Eric made sure to do as much as he could, when he could.

"That would be wonderful, dear," she said.

Eric smiled at her and then bent to give me a kiss before making Jason go help him. I helped Gran with the dishes while they worked on the steps. Just as we finished up, Eric came in to let us know he and Jason were going into town to get some new wood for the steps.

After they left, Gran and I sat down in the living room. She asked me how things were with Eric.

"Wonderful, Gran. I'm truly the luckiest girl on the planet. I thought we'd have problems at some point during school, but we just never did. We've learned a lot from you, I think. We love and respect each other, and we talk to each other if we have problems. I'm never happier than I am when I'm with him, and I can confidently say he feels the same."

"I'm so happy to hear that because I have something to tell you, sweetheart," she said.

"What is it?" I asked. Gran never looked this worried.

"This is something I've kept to myself since I was very young," she began with a sad look on her face. "When I was a young girl I met a boy my age and fell in love with him. His name was Fintan. We spent one whole glorious summer together when I was seventeen, but when my father found out he forbade me from seeing him. He didn't like Fintan's family."

I just sat there, still as could be, wondering why she was telling me this.

"Fintan still tried to see me, but I listened to my father, and told him to leave me alone. I wanted to make my father happy, but I managed to break my heart and Fintan's in the process. Two years later my father introduced me to Mitchell, and made it clear that he wanted us to marry. We did, about a year later. Mitchell was a good man, and he treated me well. I loved him, but never like I did Fintan. A couple of years into our marriage I heard that Fintan had married as well. Even after all those years my heart still broke more."

"Gran, why are you telling me this?" I asked, wiping a tear from my eye.

"Because I want you to hear it. Shortly after I found out that he'd married, I saw him here in town. I'd just been to the doctor and found out that Mitchell couldn't give me children, and I was upset."

"Oh, Gran no!" I said, gasping and covering my mouth with my hand. She continued on without looking at me.

"Mitchell was away working, and I brought Fintan home with me. He was just as in love with me as I was with him, and we made love for the first time, conceiving your aunt Linda. I never got to tell Mitchell that he was sterile, so he believed it was our child. By some miracle, the doctor never said a thing. I didn't see Fintan until I was about seven months along because he'd been out of town with his job, and when he saw me I could tell he had no idea the baby was his. He walked right past me that day, and I didn't see him again until Linda was about three. He'd just gotten a divorce from his wife and he was upset, so for some reason, he came to me. He said he'd never stopped loving me, and he didn't care that Linda wasn't his, but before I could tell him the truth he kissed me, and we made love for the last time."

"Gran," I said, taking her hand while tears fell down my cheeks.

"When he left he promised that we would be together, that he'd figure out a way, but I couldn't do that to Mitchell. He didn't deserve it. Still, Fintan said he would find a way to be with me. On his way home that night he was killed in a car accident. Nine months later I had our son, your father."

I couldn't say anything, I just continued to cry.

"I was devastated when he died. I'd never told him that he'd given me a child, and he never got to know her or his son. He never knew that he ended up with three beautiful grandchildren. It was all because I was too much of a coward to tell him… too much of a coward to defy my father and be with him no matter what."

She took my hand and wiped my tears away.

"Darling, I'm telling you this because even though I know you understand how lucky you are to have Eric, I want you to realize just how special that is. I've always known that the two of you love each other like Fintan and I did, and all I wanted was for you to find the happiness that I was only shown a few, all too brief times."

"Is this why you always let Eric sleep in my room?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.

Gran laughed. "It may have had something to do with it. I also trusted the two of you, and I knew nothing would happen. I simply hoped it would make you realize your feelings for each other."

I smiled and grabbed a tissue to wipe away the remnants of my tears.

"Sweetheart, look at me," Gran said gently, and I did. "I want you to hold onto Eric for dear life. I know he will do the same. No matter what happens in your lives, you will always have each other, and that is the most important thing."

"I know, Gran," I assured her, and then wrapped my arms around her. "Grandpa was a good man."

"Yes he was, and I don't want you to ever stop thinking of him that way," she said.

"I won't."

By the time Eric and Jason finished the steps my face was dry, and Gran and I were fixing supper. Since we all had a big lunch, we made soup and sandwiches for supper. Jason left shortly after to go to the bar, and while I was helping Gran with the dishes Eric managed to sneak off somewhere. He reappeared as we were finishing up and asked me to go on a walk with him. He had our old photo album/scrapbook in his hand, and I got a little giddy. I hadn't looked through it in what felt like forever. We'd left it at Gran's so she could look at it if she was missing up. Every Thanksgiving when we came home for a visit we'd add our picture from Halloween.

Eric took my hand when we got outside, and we started walking to the graveyard.

"What did you and Gran talk about while Jason and I were fixing the porch steps?" he asked, and I gave him a surprised look. "I can tell when you've been upset."

"She told me a story, and I really don't think I can repeat it right now, but I'll tell you soon. Her moral of the story was to make me understand how lucky we are to have each other."

"We are very lucky," he agreed.

We went to sit under our old tree in the graveyard. Eric sat down first, and I sat down between his open legs, my back to his chest. He handed the album to me and I opened it up with a smile.

"I can't believe some of the things I saved," I said as I flipped the pages. Eric stopped me when I got to the one of us at our first homecoming.

"Oh gosh we look so young," I said.

"That was the night I realized I wanted you to be my girlfriend, but I never got up the courage to ask you," he said.

I smiled and turned a few more pages, until I got to the picture Gran had taken of us on the swing in our fairy and Viking costumes. I got a little teary eyed as I remembered that night. Eric held me a little tighter, and kissed my neck.

I continued turning pages until I reached the last one we'd added. With a sigh of contentment I began to close the book, but Eric's hand stopped me.

"I think you should turn to the next page," he said quietly in my ear.

"Okay."

I turned to the next page, and when I saw what was on it I stopped breathing.

In the middle of the page there was a beautiful diamond ring, taped right in the center. Above it were the words, "Will you marry me?" written in Eric's beautiful handwriting.

I couldn't speak. I knew this was coming in the back of my mind, but I assumed he'd wait until he wasn't a team rookie anymore, or until we'd gotten settled in our new house. I hadn't expected it at all.

"Sookie," he whispered in my ear. "Will you marry me?"

"Yes," I breathed out, and turned around to kiss him. His arms wrapped around my waist and pulled me tightly to him as he kissed me back. He finally broke away and picked up the album I'd tossed aside. He removed the ring from the page and slid it onto the ring finger of my very shaky left hand. We both looked at it for a second, and then I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him again.

I rested my forehead against his so we could catch our breath, and said softly, "I love you."

"I love you too," he whispered back.

We stood up, and Eric picked up our album before taking my left hand in his right. We walked back to the house to share our good news with Gran, and I knew I would do just what she said. I would hang on to Eric for dear life, because it was true that no matter what happened in our life we would always have each other. He'd proven that to me time and time again, and I couldn't wait to prove it right back for the rest of our lives.

* * *

**And there it is. My first complete story. *sniffles* Oh hell *sobs***

**I'm very sad to see it end, but there is a sequel to look forward to, and I'll be sure to post a note onto this story to let everyone know when it will be up. I haven't begun writing it yet, but I have a very clear idea of what will be happening. **

**There are so many people to thank with for this story. First of all _Zigster_ and _Yogagal_ for hosting the GP contest, because without it I probably never would have gotten this idea. Thanks to _DeeMM_ for listening to my idea and helping me through it with her amazing support. To _Krismom_ for betaing the original one-shot and offering so much encouragement. My LB _Sunkisz_ for kicking my ass into writing this expansion. And finally to my fuckawesome beta _FarDareisMai2, _who I'm lucky to have as my guide and my friend. **

**I also want to thank everyone who has read, reviewed, alerted, and favorited the story as it's gone along. Your support and love has been outstanding and wonderful, and I wouldn't have continued without each and every one of you. **


	14. Sequel

**This is just a note to let you know that the first chapter of the sequel to this story is now published.**

It's called _Candle in the Window_, and this is the summary:

NFL player Eric and Teacher Sookie are happily married and more in love than ever. They've settled into a great life and are talking about expanding their family when something unexpected and life-altering happens.

**Link (remove spaces)**: http://www . fanfiction . net/s/5917340/1/

If you're not a copy/paster, the link will be under my stories in my profile :)


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